Enhancing Lightning Runes
Leylin had previously sealed off his bloodline force to stop the curse from flaring up. Naturally, he could undo the seal in times of danger and restore his strength to the peak of rank 5. However, the curse would absorb even more energy from him every time he did so.
Even if he successfully sealed himself up again, the time he had left would be brought down by about seven months. Leylin had only two years left. Unless it was absolutely necessary, he definitely would not do this.
However, he would have no choice but to use this method in times of crisis, even if the temporary help resulted in long-term danger. Leylinâs cold pupils were fixed on the rank 5 Warlock in front of him.
âGood, very good! Since you were able to take on my attack, you have the right to speak to me on equal grounds!â
Unexpectedly, the great elder revealed a rigid smile, âLet me introduce myself. My name is Eam, Eam Lyers. Rank 5 Warlock and the grand elder of the Lyers family!â
Seeing the opponent withdrawing all the electricity around his body, Leylin was rendered speechless. He could tell that this Eam was definitely a very arrogant Warlock. Unless he showed enough power to threaten him, it would be impossible to speak to him on equal terms.
Now, after attacking and finding out Leylinâs abilities, he suddenly was more approachable.
Though still on his guard, Leylin was more than willing to avoid needless conflicts, âIâve already introduced myself before. My name is Leylin! Lord Eamâs way of greeting others is really quite unique.â
âHeheâ¦â Eam merely smiled in answer to Leylinâs words and did not address them. Instead, he observed Leylin with interest, âYou arenât a Magus of the subterranean world, are you?â
âIndeed.â There was no way for Leylin to hide this. Were he a rank 2 or 3 Magus, he could conceal himself from Eam since it would make sense for there to be no mention of him anywhere. But a rank 5 Warlock of unknown origins was rather suspicious.
Given that this was an inherited bloodline, how could there be no information on it? Would the Lyers family not know beforehand about a Warlock family with a rank 5 serpent bloodline?
Leylin had burst out of nowhere, and this rank 5 Warlock had no information about him. That led Eam to his conclusion.
âAs expected, my Lord is a Magus from the world above ground!â Seeing Leylin admitting this, Eam nodded and looked confident.
âYes, I do come from the surface, and Iâm the head of the Magi organisations in control of the passage to the surface. Lord Eam shouldnât be any ordinary Warlock, right? The passage in the Thunderbird Holy Landâ¦â Leylin shot Eam a glance.
To expand the passage between the surface and underground, he needed to find something like a spokesperson here. It seemed that Eam and the Lyers Family suited this role well.
Not only was he very powerful, there was nothing he didnât know about the passage. More importantly, they had long since gained control of the exit.
âWe obviously know about it. In actuality, itâs a secret that my ancestor found out. Ever since then, our Lyers family has settled here, and weâve been trying to make contact with the surface thatâs been sealed from usâ¦â Though Eam was speaking in very vague terms, Leylin could imagine the carnage involved. Things like vying for this territory, trying to damage the seal and attracting adventurers to become blood sacrifices here were perhaps merely the tip of the iceberg.
There was still much that was unknown regarding what they had attempted on the sly. What was most crucial was the fact that they had persevered for so long.
âSince you were able to come over, the seal at the surface world should be about to crumble right?â Eam looked at Leylin, frowning slightly, âBased on my estimations, the seal should still hold for a period of timeâ¦â
âActually, I secretly came over through a crack in the seal. On the surface, the seal can still hold for about a centuryâ¦â
âA century? That seems rather long. Did anything go wrong with the sacrifices? Or was the construction of coordinates on both ends not done well, resulting in a huge energy consumption?â Eamâs expression went dark while Leylin maintained his silence, not admitting that heâd tampered with it.
âBut for Sir Leylin to pass through the cracks in the seal must mean that your attainments in spell formations must be at the level of grandmastersâ¦â Eamâs gaze towards Leylin had now turned more gentle. People who were grandmasters in fields of magic were highly regarded.
âThis tiny ability really isnât worth mentioning. Well then⦠Since we own one end of the passage each and both have great influence in our respective regionsâ¦â Leylin mentioned what he had been preparing to say for a long time.
âForming an alliance is beneficial to both of us!â Eam spoke straightforwardly, the smile on his arrogant face widening. He stepped forward while beaming and extended his right arm towards Leylin. âWelcome, partner!â
âItâs my honour,â Leylin grinned and extended his right arm as well.
The two hands grasped each other, and golden light flowed out. Fine golden letters were like ants as they crawled everywhere.
An alliance between Magi was even more important and solemn than an agreement. Most of the time, a very serious ceremony would be conducted, and even a third party would be invited to be the witness.
Leylin and Eam were both rank 5 Warlocks. While they didnât need to go to the trouble and do all that, a basic oath was required. However, what they were agreeing to now was a general purpose oath, and the details would be determined through discussions afterwards by their subordinates.
After the oath was done with, the two of them had gained a tacit understanding. They laughed, feeling like their relationship had gotten better.
Though this sort of oath could be violated, they each had control of their sides of the passage, which signified a great amount of benefits. Leylin would not want to destroy this unless heâd gone mad.
As for how things would progress after this⦠That probably wouldnât have much to do with him anymore.
By that time, he would either have broken through his bloodline shackles and soared into the sky leaving Eam in the dust, or be sealed to death by the curse mark. He, whose bloodline force had been completely severed from him, would die.
Whatever happened, there would not be any issues here.
âSir Eamâ¦â Leylin laughed as he spoke.
âJust call me Eam, Leylin, youâre qualified to do so!â Eam chuckled, though his facial muscles were obviously a little stiff. However, that just made this moment all the more rare.
âAlright, Eam! Iâm quite interested in the spell you used just now and that instantaneous effectâ¦â Leylin smiled and asked.
The instantaneous lightning spell was very frightening, and Eam had been able to produce five streaks. Leylin was very interested in this technique.
âOh, this?â Eam nodded, âWe of the Lyers family inherited the bloodline of the Thorned Thunderbird, which means weâre proficient in lightning-type spells. Booming Thunderclap is one of the Arcane Arts we created from experiments where Warlocks at Morning Star and above combine different innate spells. While the might isnât as powerful as a real Morning Star Arcane Art, itâs quite effective.â
Leylin couldnât help but nod. Experiments of combining bloodline spells and creating a correct Arcane Art might sound easy, but was definitely far from it.
A Morning Star Arcane Art was the fusion of rank 1 to 4 innate spells. The opponentâs Booming Lightning Thunder only used one or two bloodline spells and, matched with specific energy undulations and other spell models, formed a unique Arcane Art.
âThough I donât mind telling you the principle behind the Arcane Art, itâs a pity that you arenât of the bloodline of the Thorned Thunderbird. You canât use itâ¦â Arcane Arts like these usually needed specific bloodline spells, and some needed the usage of bloodline force. That was why Eam wasnât afraid of revealing this information.
âActually, I donât want to know about that. Rather, Iâm interested in the technique where you amplified a streak of lightning five timesâ¦â Leylin said as he hastily shook his head. He could not express interest in bloodline spells, or else heâd be thought to be coveting Eamâs bloodline. No matter how good their relationship might be, this would entail burying a thorn in Eamâs heart.
What Leylin truly wanted to know was how he had amplified the lightning force.
With the A.I. Chip, he could clearly see that Eam had only produced one Booming Thunderclap, and it was only slightly more powerful than that of the Morning Star Warlock. However, it had transformed after passing through some carved inscription that was like a spell formation, and been amplified till it was almost terrifying.
âOh, that!â Eam patted his Magus robes in pride, a ring of dazzling light floating around his body and creating a gigantic ring of lightning. Unbelievably large lightning runes that exceeded Leylinâs expectations undulated out with a complicated radiance.
âThis is one of the works that Iâm most proud of!â Eam watched the complicated lightning runes and seemed to be intoxicated.
âThese are runes that I obtained from a primordial lightning tree. It seemed to have been created naturally, yet held some mysterious strength. I couldnât copy the strength, so all I could do was embroider it onto my robesâ¦â
The silver lightning ring spell formation returned and shrank to become a dazzling silver rune, emitting a splendid luster on Eamâs Magus robes.
âWith this Primordial Magic Robe, other lightning type spells are amplified a little as well, but it can increase the might of Booming Thunderclap fivefold!â Eam lovingly touched the robes he was wearing, completely engrossed.
âIf being in bliss is an ability, then Eam, you must be the darling of the heavens!â Leylin smiled slightly and spoke flatteringly, a trace of blue flashing in his eyes.