The eyes of many of the children who were seated below, listening, began to shine.
Fly?
Who wouldn’t want to fly?
“A Saint-level magus can fly, yes, but the Ernst Institute can perhaps produce just one, at most, in a century! But we magi of the wind-style can, upon attaining the fifth rank, immediately execute the ‘Floating Technique’,” Trey said confidently, “And wind-style magi are extremely fast. When they execute the ‘Supersonic’ technique, they can increase their speed dramatically.”
“But of course, those are just common techniques. The legendary forbidden technique, ‘Annihilating Tempest’, is the most powerful destructive technique of them all. There’s also the legendary forbidden technique, ‘Dimensional Edge’, which is the most powerful one-on-one attacking technique.” Trey’s voice was filled with reverence.
Many of the youths stared wide-eyed.
“Hmph, how can the Annihilating Tempest be considered the most powerful destructive technique? What about my earth-style’s ‘Heaven Collapses, Earth Shatters’ and ‘Heavenly Meteor’s Descent’?” Doehring Cowart, upon hearing these words, was somewhat unhappy.
“Grandpa Doehring, what is this ‘Dimensional Edge’ technique?” Linley asked.
Given that Grandpa Doehring had not mentioned the ‘Dimensional Edge’ spell, Linley believed that perhaps it really was the most powerful one-on-one attacking technique of them all.
“The Dimensional Edge spell? It can slice through the dimensional walls which separates matter itself. Of course it is powerful. But although it is ridiculously strong in one-on-one combat, it’s still only a one-shot spell. How can it compare to our earth-style’s ‘World Protector’, which can battle nonstop with the enemy?” Doehring Cowart was quibbling and equivocating.
But Linley could tell.
This Dimensional Edge spell clearly possessed a terrifying power. And most likely, it wasn’t as simple as Grandpa Doehring made it out to be. A one-shot technique? Even a one-shot technique could be enough, if the opponent couldn’t dodge.
“If I can become both a Dragonblood Warrior as well as utilize wind-style magic, then…” Linley’s heart was moved.
And then, he just continued to listen to the class. Linley became more and more intrigued by wind-style magic. Of the four elements of earth, fire, water and wind, each contained profound mysteries which were as deep as the sea. The ocean of magical knowledge was an endless one. And now, Linley had begun to wade into its depths.
24
A Learning Period
Spring left and autumn came. In the blink of an eye, Linley had spent half a year at the Ernst Institute.
During those days in school, Linley was like a thirsty man in the desert, frantically drinking up the basic fundamentals to magic. With regards to wind-style magic, Linley’s knowledge and strength continued to rise as well, with Doehring Cowart giving him pointers every so often.
Today, the sunlight was bright and beautiful.
The four bros of dorm 1987 had just finished lunch. They were wearing a set of sky-blue robes, the school uniform of the Institute. Due to his constant physical training, Linley appeared all the more mesmerizing, with his elegant form covered by the sky-blue robes. This was why quite a few of the young girls in the wind magic class liked to chat with him.
At this moment, the four bros were walking while chatting idly.
“Right, Linley, today the rest of us are going to attend the new students’ fellowship. Are you going?” George chortled.
George loved to participate in student unions and fellowships, and he was excellent in ferreting out news and making new friends. Although he had only been at the Institute for half a year, among the first grade students of the Ernst Institute, George had become a mover and a shaker.
“Nope.” Linley’s answer was succinct and direct.
“Haha, I knew Linley definitely wouldn’t go.” Reynolds laughed loudly.
Putting his arm around Linley’s shoulders, Yale sighed, “Linley, my man, there’s no need to be this diligent when it comes to studying. Based on your talent, if you just expend a bit of effort, you can easily become a magus of the sixth rank in thirty years. Why do you have to work so crazy hard? You should learn to relax and enjoy life. There’s a lot of cute girls who will be at the fellowship, you know.”
“Right. Really cute girls.” Reynolds opened his eyes wide and nodded.
Linley could only sigh helplessly.
Under the guidance of Yale, the innocent youngster Reynolds had begun to go astray.
“Yale, you pervert, stop tugging at me. Alright, time for me to go train. Tomorrow is the end of the month; I’ll hang out with you guys then.” Linley laughed. For the last two days of each month, Linley let himself take two-day break.
Knowing Linley’s temperament, Yale, Reynolds, and George all nodded.
Linley immediately walked off, quietly but quickly heading towards the mountains behind the school. There were thousands of students at the Ernst Institute, and there were also many magi who were researching new spells here. There were also many servants. In short, the Ernst Institute was a well-populated place.
On the road to the mountains, many students wearing blue gowns could be seen as well.
“Growl…” A low roar sounded.
Linley turned to look, and his eyes brightened. “A magical beast!”
A flowing mane, slick cyan fur, and four thick, forceful limbs. A pair of eyes filled with wildness, viciousness, and a cold fierceness. Those coldly flashing golden claws made onlookers’ hearts tremble.
The magical beast, ‘Windwolf’.
A terrifying magical beast that moved as fast as the wind itself.
The most terrifying thing one could encounter in a forest of magical beasts was a pack of Windwolves. If you encountered them, based on their speed, there was no way you could escape.
A handsome, black-haired man was seated atop the Windwolf. The young man was staring delightedly around him, seemingly very proud of having such a fine magical beast.
“This should be a magical beast of the fifth or sixth rank,” Linley decided.
At the Ernst Institute, there were indeed quite a few people who had magical beasts. Aside from the magi who had been invited to come to the Institute, some fifth and sixth grade students were able to buy soul-binding formation scrolls, and had managed to tame some magical beasts to serve as their mounts.
“It’s just a magical beast. Why be so cocky about it?” Linley looked somewhat contemptuously at the self-pleased youngster.
After departing from the school, Linley entered the mountain in the rear.
The mountain behind the Ernst Institute was an extremely wide-ranging one. Long, long ago, magical beasts used to live on this mountain, but as time went on, all of the magical beasts were exterminated by the magi of the Institute. By now, there were only a few normal beasts still living here.
Upon entering the mountain, Linley’s speed increased dramatically.
He naturally began to use the wind-style ‘Supersonic’ spell, making his entire body as light as a leaf. Like a spirit, he wound his way through the mountains. After running for several kilometers, Linley reached his target destination, an empty area next to some flowing water.
“Squeak squeak, Bebe chirped at Linley.
Linley chuckled and said, “You want to go out and play again? Fine, but don’t run off too far.” Linley had a lot of faith in Bebe. A year had passed since he had met the little guy, but although Bebe still hadn’t grown larger and was still just twenty centimeters long, his speed had improved dramatically.
“Magi? Perhaps a warrior of the eighth rank would be able to catch the little Shadowmouse, but only a Saint-level magus would be able to do the same.” Linley knew very well how strong the bodies of most magi were.
The little Shadowmouse, Bebe, scurried into the mountain forests.
“Grandpa Doehring, please come out and instruct me,” Linley immediately a
sked mentally.
A mist flew out, transforming into Doehring Cowart. Doehring Cowart blinked and glanced at Linley. “Linley, what’s going on? In the past, haven’t you always ignored this old fellow and entered the meditative trance first? Why are you calling me out now? I was having a wonderful nap just now, hmph. You ruined my beautiful dream.”
Linley quirked his lips.
Although Grandpa Doehring was a Saint-level Grand Magus, after getting to know him, Linley realized that although he looked kindly and amiable on the outside, on the inside, he was a playful scamp.
“Grandpa Doehring, I feel like I have reached the level of a magus of the second rank. I want you to take a look and see for yourself,” Linley finally said.
“A magus of the second rank?”
Intrigued, Doehring Cowart ran some calculations. “Hmm, right, about a year has passed since you started learning with me. Right, first, perform the introductory spell of ‘Shattered Rocks’. Do your absolute best, understood?”
‘Shattered Rocks’ could be considered a spell which scaled.
There was a ‘Shattered Rocks’ spell of the first rank, but there was also a Saint-level spell for ‘Shattered Rocks’; only, the name for it was called ‘Heavenly Meteor’s Descent’. Naturally, when the strength of an earth-style magus increased, his power in using the ‘Shattered Rocks’ would also increase.
“Yes, Grandpa Doehring.”
Linley immediately began to quietly mouth the words to a spell. The words had long since been memorized by Linley, to the point where he could recite them without thinking. As the words to the spell continued, Linley could feel his entire spirit enter a special mode.
The earth-style mageforce in his chest began to roil about, and natural elemental essence began to gather there as well.
Suddenly, the nearby earth began to crack and shatter.
Five skull-sized pieces of rock flew up and began to circle around Linley’s head. These five rocks were all covered with earthen specks of light, and as Linley’s eyes began to shine, he let out a deep shout. The five rocks rapidly shot off to a far distance, carrying a gust of wind with them.
“SMASH!”
The five stones covered in earthen light smashed into a thick tree trunk. The tree swayed, but its trunk did not shatter. In the end, the five stones still came tumbling down to the ground.
“Yeah, not bad.” Doehring Cowart’s eyes lit up. “To be able to control five stones at once with such impressive speed shows that you do, in fact, have the power of a magus of the second rank.” Doehring Cowart was very satisfied with Linley’s performance.
Linley couldn’t help but reveal a hint of a smile on his face as well.
He had just taken another step towards his goals.
Linley would never be able to forget the words his father had said to him when he left. “If you cannot bring it back, even when I die, I won’t forgive you!” These words had pierced Linley’s heart like a sharp knife, and he was constantly reminded of them.
Right now, Doehring Cowart was chortling happily. “But Linley, you must understand that a magus of the second rank counts for little. Based on our ranking systems, magi of the first and second rank are all considered ‘entry-level magi’. Magi of the third and fourth ranks are considered ‘mid-level magi’, and fifth and sixth ranks are ‘high-level magi’. A magus of the seventh rank is called a ‘senior magus’, a magus of the eighth rank is a ‘master magus’, and a magus of the ninth rank is an ‘arch magus’. These ranks of seven through nine are the highest. The road you have to travel is a long way.”
“I know.” Linley nodded.
“Good. Train hard.” Doehring Cowart once more entered the Coiling Dragon Ring.
Linley collected himself, suppressing his excitement at becoming a magus of the second rank. He once again tranquilly sat and entered the meditative trance. The strong became strong one step at a time, and through achieving many accomplishments.
Approximately three kilometers away from Linley.
Linley’s wind-style magus instructor, the sixth-ranked magus Trey, frowned. “Hmm, the earth magic spell, ‘Shattered Rocks’? Based on its power, it should be of the second rank. An entry-level magus has come to the mountain to train? Who is it?”
Just then, Trey had utilized the ‘Windscout’ spell, and had sensed the earth-style magic which Linley had just cast.
Based on the magic vibrations, Trey was able to determine what spell it was.
Trey curiously walked in that direction. Based on his prowess as a magus of the sixth rank, his execution of the ‘Supersonic’ spell was far stronger than that of Linley’s. Like a passing fog or cloud, Trey flowed through the mountain easily and tranquilly.
In the blink of an eye, Trey had reached a spot two hundred meters from Linley.
Standing next to a large tree, Trey saw Linley from afar.
“It’s him?”
Naturally, Trey recognized his own student. “This kid called Linley never talks in class. Even when experimenting in new spells, others will try them out, but he will just stand and watch from afar, never showing his strength. It seems… this kid called Linley is already a magus of the second rank. I remember him being one of our new students. Didn’t expect him to be so talented.”
Linley already knew how to cast spells, so of course when the instructors told the other students to give it a try, he would just stand and watch.
Never participating in any group activities, Linley’s secretiveness was acknowledged by everyone who knew him.
“Hehe, looks like I have a genius among my students. Mm. Looks like this year, I should receive a reward when the first grade student competition commences.” A brilliant smile was on Trey’s face. As for Linley, right now, being in a meditative trance, he couldn’t sense anything more than a hundred meters away from him.
A month had passed after Linley had become a magus of the second rank.
Within the first grade wind magic classroom.
Linley would only go to the earth magic class once every month or so, but he attended every single wind magic class. Today, Linley was seated in his usual spot.
“Linley, you came.” Just as Linley sat down, a very adorable young lady sat down next to him.
Seeing the girl, Linley smiled. “Delia, you came pretty early. There’s still quite some time before the next class starts.” Sitting together with a beautiful girl was of course something enjoyable. Naturally, Linley wouldn’t push her away.
Delia was no ordinary person.
Her brother, Dixie, was the number one genius of the entire Ernst Institute, and was described as a talent which would be found once in a century at most. He, too, was a dual element mage, and his elemental essence affinity was exceptional. But what was more, he was a supreme talent with 68 times the spiritual essence of an ordinary person.
As Dixie’s sister, Delia was naturally pretty exceptional as well.
“It’s because I know you always come early.” Delia beamed, her eyes crinkling.
The two sat together and chatted. Time passed quite quickly, and before they realized it, class had started. Instructor Trey energetically explained things in front, and Linley sat beneath him, listening intently. But Delia, every so often, would sneak a peek at Linley.
“Alright, today’s class is over for now. But before class ends, there’s something I must inform you all about.” Instructor Trey smiled as he spoke.
All of the students immediately began to buzz.
“The older students all know that our Ernst Institute has a tradition. During the last two months of every year, a yearly tournament will be held. The yearly tournament is always the noisiest, energetic time at the Ernst Institute. The students who achieve victory in the yearly tournament will have a higher chance of being rated ‘superior’ upon their graduation. When these students graduate, it is more likely that they will be invited by the Four Great Empires.” Instructor Trey laughed.
All of the students below immediat
ely began to grow excited.
At the Ernst Institute, talents were as common as the clouds. And the number one problem that all talents shared was that they didn’t like to admit inferiority to others!
Thus, the yearly tournament had become a way for talents to become famous. Close to 90% of the students would pay attention to the tournament, and everyone with some ability would participate.
“Naturally, we wind magic practitioners will also do battle. Everyone interested in signing up, please speak to me.” Instructor Trey smiled as he spoke, but his gaze drifted towards Linley.
“Instructor, I wish to enroll.” Many students below immediately began to clamor to sign up.
“Great.” Instructor Trey took out a duck feather quill pen and began to record names, but after taking down ten or so names, he realized that Linley was busy chatting with Delia, apparently not interested in signing up at all.
Trey walked over.
Linley involuntarily glanced up and immediately called out respectfully, “Instructor Trey.” The nearby Delia also paid her respects.
Trey smiled and nodded. “Linley, this yearly tournament is an excellent opportunity to train oneself. I expect all of the elites of the first grade students to attend. Why aren’t you signing up? This is a rare opportunity.”
“I’m not interested,” Linley said directly.
Instructor Trey couldn’t help but start.
“Linley, you are no doubt unaware that the victors of the tournament will receive some rewards,” Instructor Trey said enticingly.
“Rewards?” Linley was in desperate need of money.
His clan’s economic situation was in such terrible shape. If he could win some money, he wouldn’t mind attending the yearly tournament.
“Right. You should know that most students live in ordinary dorms, those single unit ones. But the top three victors of the tournament are all qualified to live in those two-story buildings for a year. That’s a proof of status. The rooms there are much more comfortable as well.” Instructor Trey continued.
Coiling Dragon_Book 1 of the Coiling Dragon Saga Page 22
