"Arcane Imprint?"
Leilin nodded, ceasing his movements.
The so-called Arcane Imprint was a tool for communication between formal wizards.
Each newly promoted formal wizard could design a unique symbol for themselves, representing the wizard, and could later leave Arcane Imprints on one another for contact.
Some wizards would also brand this imprint on their family members and servants, signifying ownership.
Leilin had also designed an Arcane Imprint for himself — a circle on the outermost edge, an inverted triangle inside, and a slender black snake winding upward within the triangle.
On the leader's chest, a blue dodo bird head was flickering, radiating light outward.
It was evident that initiating contact from their side was very draining of spiritual power and mana. After just a few minutes, the leader's face had turned deathly pale.
Fortunately, before the leader could hold on no longer, the blue light blazed brightly, and a blue dodo flew out from the leader's chest, landing on his shoulder.
"Soro, what do you want with me?"
The dodo seemed not to notice Leilin at all, addressing the leader directly.
"Cl-Clan Leader, it's like this..." The leader hurriedly whispered an explanation of the situation to the dodo.
Arcane Imprint communication had its limitations — it could only transmit voice, with no visual information, and without the amplification of a dedicated Signal Tower, the voice couldn't even be carried over great distances.
"Hello! Young powerhouse!" The dodo spoke in greeting.
"I've long heard of the great name of Patriarch Isaac of the Yili Family!" Leilin spoke, his voice low and hoarse — clearly modified by the Chip.
"I hear that a few of my short-sighted family members offended you, and I apologize on their behalf..." The blue dodo had by now flown back to the leader's chest, transforming into something resembling a living tattoo.
"They dared to offend me — a formal wizard. They must pay the price!" Leilin's voice was brimming with killing intent.
"They?" The dodo paused briefly before continuing. "I can compensate on their behalf..."
"Compensate?" Leilin let out a laugh like a night owl's screech. "Are you insulting me?"
"Not good! Run!" The leader clearly hadn't expected Leilin to be so unyielding, and immediately retreated.
"After offending me, you think you can just leave?"
A flash of crimson appeared in Leilin's eyes, and several red fireballs shot out instantly, reducing the three who couldn't dodge in time to a charred mass.
Apprentice-level strength, before a formal wizard, was as fragile as white paper.
And the Arcane Imprint could only serve as a communication tool — there was absolutely no way to transmit magical attacks through it.
Well aware of the Arcane Imprint's drawbacks, Leilin naturally chose to silence them permanently.
After all, his voice had been altered by the Chip, so Isaac would never be able to track him down.
Keeping these apprentices alive was only asking for trouble.
Furthermore, he had no intention of staying in the Yinglan Duchy — once he departed, there was nothing they could do to him.
He walked over to the grandfather and granddaughter. The little girl was still unconscious, glistening tear droplets still clinging to her face.
"W-
The old man's face was full of shock. He clearly hadn't expected that the person who had been riding in the same carriage with him for over ten days was actually a formal wizard.
Leilin crouched down and briefly examined the old man's wounds.
The injuries were severe — a normal person would have been dead for sure. Even though this old man was a Second-rank Apprentice, he could only survive a dozen or so more minutes.
With Leilin's abilities, he could certainly heal him. But it would require consuming some rare potions, and the old man didn't possess any sorcerer bloodline. Leilin had no intention of doing so.
However, some basic measures still needed to be taken.
"Drink this. It'll help you feel a bit better." Leilin casually tossed a potion that stimulated life potential to the old man, then went over to the other side to wake the little girl.
"Grandpa Miller!" The moment the girl woke, she threw herself onto Miller and began crying loudly.
After drinking the potion, a flush of vigor appeared on the old man's face, and he instantly became more energetic. This type of potion was merely a stimulant — far cheaper than a healing potion, so Leilin didn't mind offering it.
"Good child..."
Old Miller tremblingly extended his weathered, wrinkled hand and stroked the little girl's head.
"This... this Wizard, sir, could I ask you to take her to Marilyn at the Magreli Grand Canyon..."
The old man looked at Leilin pleadingly.
"I can." Leilin was silent for a moment before nodding in agreement.
"Thank you! You will always be a friend of the Lansitak Family!"
The old man gripped the little girl's hand once more and instructed: "From now on, you listen to Lord Leilin. Remember, you must obey every word he says — do you understand?"
As though he had used up all his strength, the old man's mouth began to seep dark blood the moment he finished speaking.
"I... I understand..." The little girl sobbed uncontrollably.
Seeing the girl agree, a look of relief crossed the old man's face, and he closed his eyes forever.
"Grandpa Miller! Grandpa Miller!"
The girl let out a sorrowful wail.
Leilin stood to the side, waiting for over ten minutes. When the girl's crying had subsided somewhat, he stepped forward and asked: "Let's hurry and bury your Grandpa Miller. Also, what's your name?"
"
Although Ivy wasn't an apprentice, having grown up in a wizard's household from a young age, she naturally knew what a formal wizard represented.
An hour later, Leilin stood with the little girl Ivy beside a freshly built grave, observing a final moment of silence.
Through the old man's revelations and the girl's own account, Leilin had learned the general background of the Lansitak Family.
The Lansitak Family was a small clan that reportedly once possessed an incomplete set of Meditation Method records passed down through the generations.
However, due to either bloodline impurity or the incompleteness of the Meditation Method, the family had never produced a formal wizard and had remained at the bottom of the wizarding world.
Two hundred years ago, due to a certain incident, even that incomplete Meditation Method was lost.
Sorcerers, due to their bloodline limitations, could only cultivate Meditation Methods compatible with themselves. A regular apprentice's
Thus, this family — which couldn't even produce a Wizard Apprentice — inevitably declined.
If not for several generations of clan heads going against the majority opinion and taking in a few orphans for apprentice training, they probably wouldn't have been able to muster even a single Wizard Apprentice by now.
Old Miller was one of these adopted apprentices, having previously served as the Lansitak Family's butler.
One month ago, the covetous Yili Family had launched a war against them.
All family members except Ivy had perished in that battle. Miller had fought desperately to escape with Ivy, intending to seek refuge with a friend of Ivy's parents at the Magreli Grand Canyon.
So, Ivy — now in Leilin's care — was the last bloodline of the Lansitak Family.
Upon learning this, Leilin felt an indescribable emotion stirring within him.
Seeing a fellow sorcerer family like the Lansitaks fall to such a state gave him a certain sympathy — the fox's grief when the hare dies, as the saying goes.
Of course, he would never seek revenge for the Lansitak Family over some mere sentiment. But if that short-sighted patriarch of the Yili Family were foolish enough to come before him, that would be another matter entirely.
"Let's go." Leilin took Ivy's small hand and set off on a new path.
He intended to bring the little girl to the Magreli Grand Canyon — not out of a sudden burst of kindness, but because he had other plans.
First, certain experiments would require Ivy's willing cooperation to achieve the best results.
Second, the Magreli Grand Canyon happened to be on Leilin's route anyway, so it was no trouble. Besides, if Leilin eventually found other uses for Ivy, he certainly wouldn't hand her over to that Marilyn for adoption.
Leilin didn't mind doing good deeds when it was within his power and earned him a favorable reputation — so long as it didn't compromise his own interests.
Self-sacrifice? That was something he would never do, not in a million years.
But if he could accomplish something effortlessly and gain a good reputation in the process, Leilin was naturally happy to oblige.
In Leilin's view, reputation was also a resource — a form of profit.
It was simply that different people assigned different weights to reputation's value. In his eyes, reputation ranked relatively low among priorities.
"One more thing — I'm somewhat interested in your family's bloodline, and I'll need you to cooperate with me in some experiments. Do you understand?"
As the sky grew darker, a phosphorescent green image appeared in Leilin's eyes — clearer even than during the day.
The moment those words left his mouth, Leilin clearly felt the little girl's hand tremble.
"As you wish, my lord!"
After a long pause, Ivy's slightly trembling voice finally came.
"I like smart and obedient children." Ivy's compliant behavior was a pleasant surprise for Leilin, who had expected to need more effort.
He gently patted the girl's head and lifted her into his arms.
"My... my lord..." The little girl called softly, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"You can't see the road in the dark. I'll carry you for a while!"
Sensing the trembling body in his arms, Leilin smiled and patted Ivy on the back, quickening his pace until they vanished into the darkness.
"But this kind of vision — is it a serpent's vision?"
Leilin reflected on the difference in this phosphorescent green sight.
Under his gaze, everything in the night was laid bare before him.
Tens of meters away, a dog-like creature was visible, its body emanating red heat signatures from within, radiating outward continuously.
It looked something like thermal imaging.
"So the path of a sorcerer is essentially a process of continuously fusing with the source bloodline, transforming oneself..."
Leilin mused thoughtfully. "It looks like I'll need to spend more time on Mutationology from now on."