Advent of the Archmage

Razer was a Level-16 Territory fighter. His power gave him a more advanced vision than the others.

As soon as he saw the burning gold cloud, he knew immediately that it was someone’s territory. It probably was around his level too. But who was it?

It must be the one who’d just leveled up. An indescribable feeling of panic gripped Razer. He knew the comer was a foe rather than a friend.

Before attacking Ferde, he’d already felt power similar to this golden cloud. It was probably from the same man.

This man has recently entered Level-16. I can defeat him if I’m not hurt, but now… Razer looked down at the wound on his left chest and then at the Silver Storm Sparrows speeding across the sea. Helplessness flashed past his eyes.

The High Elves’ Silver Storm Sparrows were only mortal power. He had to face the unbeatable force that could crush the entire Firuman. The moment he arrived, the wounded Razer would already be defeated.

“Sir, what should we do now?” A young hardened High Elf walked over. He was the main commander of the Silver Storm Sparrow fleet and was at Level-11. He had a strange name—Dwacheon Juan. He was 45 years old, which was the golden period for High Elves.

He was young and in a high position. He also had Legendary power, allowing him to look arrogantly at Firuman. This made him extremely confident. Even when facing the Hellfire Razer, he was still calm and composed. He didn’t seem humbled and submissive like the other High Elves.

Razer had seen many people. He was more than 60 years old and didn’t have a serene life like the High Elves on the Isle of Dawn. His life had been chaotic. To him, Dwacheon was a rookie who’d just entered the cruel world.

His exuberance was good. In a good situation, it could help him get accustomed to the world quickly. But right now, they were in a dire state. This exuberance would only make him die faster.

Since he was an extraordinary figure from the saint’s mother race and they’d interacted well this entire journey, Razer said, “The comer is of the same level as I. The situation is very dangerous. Give up on the Silver Storm Sparrows and retreat. Go back as far as you can.”

Dwacheon froze. The Isle of Dawn had 27 Silver Storm Sparrows, and they were strategic forces. Now, Razer told them to abandon eight ships without any resistance. No commander could accept it.

More importantly, this was Dwacheon’s first time commanding a fleet. If he lost, this would forever taint his reputation.

A few seconds of silence later, he said in a low voice, “Sir, there are a total of 200 high-level Magicians on a Silver Storm Sparrow. The eight ships are enough to create a Level-17 defensive and offensive magic seal. Even if the comer is at your level, we might not lose.”

This was the fleet’s last card. Once they used it, the ships would be destroyed regardless of whether they could successfully force back the opponent. No amount of repairs would work. The ships could only be turned into waste material and recycled.

The cost was too high. The High Elves wouldn’t use this tactic unless there was no choice at all.

“Oh?” Razer was slightly surprised. He hadn’t thought much of the Isle of Dawn and hadn’t taken the time to familiarize himself with this temporary ally’s power. Hearing that they could construct a Level-17 magic seal, he was quite shocked.

He carefully inspected the magic seal. A few seconds later, he shook his head. “No, it’s useless. There isn’t enough Mana stored on the fleet, and it’s not resistant enough. The ship isn’t sturdy enough either. The magic seal is far from true Level-17 power. It’s too crude and can’t stop anything. Don’t hesitate and go!”

The only similarity between this Level-17 magic seal and a true Level-17 spell was the condensation of power. As for spatial locking, territorial destruction, and other true Level-17 characteristics, it didn’t have any.

In other words, the Silver Storm Sparrow fleet’s magic seal had great offensive ability. But no matter how great its offensive ability, it was only useful if it could hit the target. Using such crude power against a Level-16 enemy was like using a magic cannon to hit a mosquito outside the cannon’s range. It was basically impossible.

But Dwacheon still wouldn’t give up. Shaking his head, he said, “No fleet in the world retreats without a fight. If there is, I’m sure they aren’t High Elves!”

With that, he returned to the cabin, ignoring Razer’s warnings.

“Prepare to fight!”

“Construct the Doomsday Storm magic seal!”

Boom, boom, boom. Blueish-white light flashed from each ship. The lights quickly solidified into blue-white belts. They extended and tied all the ships together.

Click, clack, click. Guided by the belts, the Silver Storm Sparrows got into position. Finally, the eight ships fanned out into a stable flower shape with the heads facing in and tails out.

Soon after, the Mana pools on each ship operated intensely. Blue-white light poured out and formed a circular shield. It enveloped the eight ships without a single pore. From afar, it looked like the eight ships had become a huge blue sphere.

“Oh?” It seemed interesting and hope grew in Razer’s heart. Without saying anything else, he sat cross-legged on the deck. He took out a bottle of fiery-red recovery potion and focused on controlling the Mana inside him to heal his wound.

This potion was specifically for Lava Knights and was shockingly effective. Razer was often injured in battles and was experienced in healing. Focusing now, the potion and Mana worked together. He instantly felt warmth in his chest; it was a comfortable feeling.

But it didn’t last long before he felt something wrong.

Some force is stopping me from recovering. Nana left it. This is bad.

It wasn’t much, but it was very troublesome. He tried a bit, and he could repel it, but it would take a while. He wouldn’t be able to fight for three days.

Ah, the Dark Nightmare… is indeed terrifying! Razer sighed. The Dark Nightmare was one of Nana’s nicknames. She’d earned it after killing a Level-18 Magician in the Aragu Empire.

Razer stopped thinking. No matter what, all he could do now was to focus on healing his wound.

By then, the golden halo in the sky was already close. Razer had sharp senses. He could feel the enemy approaching at 1.5 miles per second. He was less than 30 miles away and could arrive within half a minute.

Around 15 seconds later, there was a huge explosion.

Boom, boom. The sound was muffled yet magnificent like rolling thunder. This was the sound created when the other tore through the air at an extreme speed.

By now, the power of his territory had stretched over. The sky above the sea had turned light gold. Countless dragons flew through this golden sky. They roared soundlessly; it was frightening.

“Steady! Steady!” Dwacheon’s voice sounded. He was yelling with all his might. Clearly, the enemy’s force gave him great pressure.

“Target locked! Target locked! Able to attack at any time!” a Legendary Magician called. His expression was one of excitement.

The enemy was Level-16. Their Level-17 Doomsday Storm magic seal had locked onto him and could release a fatal attack at any time. Killing a Level-16 Magician would be such a glory. It would be passed down the generations!

“Prepare!” Dwacheon was excited too. Level-16? Abandon ship and escape? Despair and hopelessness? No, they had enough power to kill the enemy. Level-16 was only mediocre.

Boom! Boom! The magic seal was operating at its limit now. The air around the fleet started bubbling, ready to follow the magic seal’s order.

But then something terrifying happened.

“No, the target is using Instant Flash! Continuously! Target lost! Unable to lock onto target!”

“No!”

In the distant sky, the dark spot no longer flew smoothly. He would vanish and then reappear at an unpredictable spot. He was also approaching the Silver Storm Fleet at a shocking speed.

This was Link’s Golden Dragon Kingdom territory. He could teleport freely within it, especially since there wasn’t someone at the same level that obstructed him. For example, he didn’t dare use transmissions when facing Saroviny because that was useless. Saroviny could overlook the spatial obstacles and attack him. But now, he could crush his opponents!

If the Silver Storm Sparrow fleet was unable to destroy this territory, it didn’t matter how powerful they were. They couldn’t harm Link at all.

Amidst all the shocked cries of despair, there was a soft scrape. Golden light brushed past the Silver Storm Sparrow fleet’s magic seal. Like cutting bread, it sliced the fleet in half.

At a glance, it seemed that Link had just taken out his sword. But Hellfire Razer knew that in that instant, faced with the Level-17 Doomsday Storm magic seal, Link had actually made 36 moves. He had used up all of the magic seal’s energy before cutting it in half.

A true Level-16 Magician crushing a group of low-level Warriors was how it should be. Razer didn’t feel any surprise.

After cutting the fleet apart, the figure flashed, and someone appeared before Razer. It was Link. Sword light flashed, and Razer felt something cold between his brows.

“Why won’t you kill me?” Razer looked up. Link’s sword was one millimeter away from his forehead. The deck shook, but his sword didn’t move at all. It was as steady as a mountain.

“You’re still useful.” Link smiled thinly.