"Perhaps the Serpent Woman's hair inside the secret realm wasn't gathered by Quick Sand through capturing ancient Serpent Women. Maybe one of their members pushed their own Serpent Woman bloodline to the absolute limit—even undergoing atavism—and the material left behind was their own..."
So-called bloodline atavism was the process by which a warlock's own bloodline became so dense that it began evolving back toward its ancestral source.
Once the reversion was complete, the warlock would abandon their original human appearance entirely, transforming completely into the creature at the root of their bloodline!
At that point, the warlock could no longer be considered human—even their own bloodline kin would be unable to distinguish them from the original species.
In other words, if Leilin underwent atavism, once it was finished, he would become a true Komoyn Giant Serpent!
"Ugh… I'll pass!"
Leilin only had to imagine himself turning into a giant serpent—eating nothing but raw food every day, and when desires arose, having no choice but to seek out female snakes—and he shuddered all over.
"The Morning Star's shapeshifting technique is more than enough. As for truly becoming a giant serpent—that's not what I'm after!"
Leilin made his decision.
He pursued power and climbed toward the summit, but ultimately it was all for his own freedom and ease. If he attained supreme power at the cost of eternal suffering, then such invincibility could go hang.
Furthermore, the closer one drew to the ancestral bloodline source, the deeper the racial suppression became.
One only had to look at the great war of the Ancient Frost World—the Mother of Ten Thousand Snakes merely needed to think a thought, and countless Komoyn Giant Serpents threw their lives away battling creatures from other worlds. Leilin had no intention of working himself to the bone only to end up controlled and used as cannon fodder.
Of course, all of this was still far beyond Leilin's current reach.
In fact, he still had to rely on the power of the Serpent Woman's hair to accelerate the maturation of his own bloodline, hoping to reach the Morning Star rank as quickly as possible.
On the Central Continent, while third-rank warlocks could command widespread respect, only Morning Star Wizards were the true upper echelon!
Only after reaching the Morning Star rank could one independently conduct Star Gate experiments and attempt to travel between various outer planes and worlds—an irreplaceable capability for Leilin in resolving his bloodline problem.
After a moment's thought, a flash of silver light flickered across Leilin's hand, and a dark gold coin materialized.
"If I go to the secret realm this time—will I be able to obtain what I want and return unscathed?"
With this question in mind, Leilin tossed the coin into the air.
Clack!
The Fate Coin landed squarely on the back of Leilin's hand, revealing the image of a lucky bird. At the same time, a hairline crack appeared on its surface.
Seeing this, Leilin put the coin away. A flicker of joy crossed his face before being replaced by a grave expression.
"So success is possible, but there will be interference at the Morning Star level?"
The Fate Coin was a magical artifact Leilin had spent enormous effort crafting in the Dark Extreme Region, capable of the terrifying ability to glimpse the future. However, it was somewhat powerless against entities at the Morning Star
Every time the prediction touched upon Morning Star-level power, cracks would appear on the coin. The more cracks accumulated, the sooner the Fate Coin would ultimately be destroyed beyond repair.
Leilin had a premonition that once he lost this Fate Coin, he might not be able to craft another one for a very long time.
"What does this omen from fate actually mean? Is there a Morning Star-level creature slumbering inside the secret realm? Or will a Morning Star Wizard discover and interfere from outside?"
Leilin rubbed his brow as numerous possibilities flashed through his mind, giving him a headache.
The Fate Coin was merely an inanimate object, and its predictions were frustratingly vague, often leaving him none the wiser.
Moreover, fate was inherently elusive—even the Fate Coin could make erroneous predictions. In a place like the Central Continent, where virtually every region had a Morning Star Wizard presiding over it, the interference with fate was even more pronounced.
A Morning Star-level powerhouse already possessed the ability to subtly alter the river of destiny around them!
The strong command their own fate! That was an eternal truth!
Therefore, here the Fate Coin's predictions could only serve as reference—they weren't necessarily accurate.
A blue glow flickered through Leilin's eyes as all manner of possibilities swept before him…
After the banquet, more than two months slipped by unnoticed.
Leilin now stood in front of the black Wizard Tower, the ground around him covered with strange metal plates inscribed with various runes.
"Enchant!"
Wisps of mist-like Spiritual Power condensed into a hardened rune stylus, tracing precise and intricate patterns across the metal plates.
The patterns combined to form dazzling magical symbols and sigils.
When the final stroke was completed, all the metal plates were bathed in a faint, shimmering glow.
"My Lord's enchantment skill has surely reached the level of a master—not far from the grandmaster rank. It truly commands this subordinate's admiration!"
Pike, standing nearby, looked at the nearly all-successful enchanted metal plates with an expression of deep reverence.
The young man before him had not only advanced to the third rank of Vaporization before the age of hundred, leaving him far behind, but had also achieved grandmaster-level mastery in Potionology. Now it seemed his enchantment skill was no less impressive—master-level at minimum!
"My master's future prospects are going to be extraordinary!" A sudden thought rose in Pike's mind.
"Well and good—ultimately, I made the right choice."
Leilin paid little attention to Pike's thoughts. He examined the batch of enchanted metal plates he had produced in a single run, and a satisfied look surfaced on his face.
In truth, with the Chip's assistance, this kind of tedious work was the thing he feared least. His enchantment and alchemy skills had long since reached the grandmaster level—he had deliberately held back just now, which was the only reason a few plates had been damaged.
Otherwise, it would have been far too frightening.
Being one or two steps ahead could be called genius or prodigy. But being a dozen steps ahead would truly cause panic and brand one a monster. Leilin certainly didn't want that.
"Pike! Lay these isolation plates into the positive energy and negative energy reaction pools according to the blueprints I provided last time. Understood?"
Leilin took the white towel that the bowing Slubi offered him, wiped his hands, and issued the order to Pike in a casual tone.
The Wizard Tower, under the tireless labor of the stone folk, had already completed its main structure. Next came the carving of defensive runes and the configuration of the magical array.
Those warlocks who had pledged allegiance to Leilin were working day and night alongside him, inscribing runes onto various materials, which were inspected and stored in preparation for full-scale construction.
"At once, my master!" Pike bowed respectfully, which surprised Leilin somewhat.
This newly acquired vassal seemed to have grown even more deferential.
But that was only natural. A leader's authority was built through a continual cycle of growing stronger and commanding obedience.
"Also, I intend to make a trip. While I'm away, you'll be responsible for the entire Wizard Tower's construction. You may begin building some auxiliary facilities as well! But the activation rituals must wait for my return—I'll handle those personally!"
Leilin issued his orders.
Such miscellaneous tasks could certainly be delegated. As long as the one performing the final inspection and activation of the magical array was himself, there would be no problem.
The last step in particular—the construct animation spell—would allow Leilin to bind the entire Wizard Tower into a seamless whole and awaken its sentience. Any issues would be laid bare at that stage.
"Understood! My Lord, you're going on a journey?" Pike was somewhat surprised.
The Wizard Tower was only half built—the dream of every wizard. In principle, nothing should have been able to move them away from such a project, so Leilin's departure was quite puzzling.
"Mm. I'm heading to headquarters. The timeline is uncertain!"
Leilin gazed at the distant sky.
This time, he had a compelling reason to go. The allure of the Serpent Woman's hair upon him was simply too great.
Besides, apart from the final few steps, the construction of the Wizard Tower was largely a matter of detail work. It didn't require him to be present the entire time.
…
A few days later, the outer edge of the Phosphorus Fire Swamp.
"Haha! Leilin, you finally made it—we've been waiting for you!"
"Sorry, I had some things to attend to and arrived a bit late!" Leilin wore an apologetic smile as he greeted Kasha.
Besides Robin and Kasha, nine other warlocks were present, all at the third rank. Leilin silently marveled that the established bloodline aristocrats could casually field this many third-rankers without even showing their full strength.
"This is Roya—you met him at the banquet before!" Robin cheerfully pulled Leilin aside.
"Uncle Leilin!" The young man named Roya had a pair of wine-red eyes that made him instantly memorable.
He was Robin's junior relative, with a dense bloodline that had already reached the third rank. Robin valued him above all others, and the two had crossed paths once at the last banquet.
As for the other third-rank warlocks, Robin glossed over them in a single breath.
The gathering was tacitly led by the four Komoyn warlocks at the third rank. The eight Horar Black Snake warlocks, though also at the third rank, were clearly a step lower in status.
Of those eight third-rank warlocks, Robin alone had brought five. Coupled with his protégé Roya, his strength within the small expedition force was unrivaled. Kasha had brought three Horar Black Snake warlocks from her own family—her two first-rank descendants from last time hadn't shown up at all, presumably because they knew this expedition was dangerous and they would be of no use.
Leilin, for his part, was a lone wolf—looking rather pathetic by comparison.
Among his subordinates, only Pike was barely presentable, but he would be of little use in this expedition. One wrong move and he could be lost, so for Leilin, he was better off staying behind to watch the estate.
"Good—now that everyone's here, let's set out! The Land of Oblivion is a long way from here. The airship ride alone will take a full month!" Robin declared with a sweep of his hand, brimming with confidence.