Foreboding Storm - Chapter 129

Crown Prince Lail’s black robes flapped around him as an oppressive aura exuded from his figure, blasting the white trees apart. The last wave of silver liquid, a condensed form of the accumulated elemental energy in the region, seeped into his and Princess Qamari’s Realm Heart and pounded on the revolving ball of compressed energy.

Instantly, the ball of compressed elemental energy burst into a devastating explosion that swept through the Realm Heart. With an unstoppable might, it shattered the final barrier between the Elemental Revolving Stage and Elemental Flushing Stage.

Under the pure, condensed elemental energy baptism, Crown Prince Lail and Princess Qamari simultaneously swept through the Elemental Revolving Stage and directly stepped into the First level of the Elemental Flushing Stage.

This was a feat unheard of and unseen since the age of men and beast when blue and purple level talents were as prevalent as red and orange level talents.

The pure, compressed elemental energy of their Realm Heart flushed through their body, cleansing the muscles and tissues, as it increased their physical fitness to another level. As they had recently undergone an upgrade in their physical fitness, the increase this time was a lot lower compared to the first.

As the last strands of the elemental energy integrated into their body, Crown Prince Lail’s floating figure descended to the barren and dry ground. Sparks of black lightning danced across his body and exploded outward before dispersing.

Crown Prince Lail opened his eyes, and thin strands of black sparks flashed in their depths. Hypnotizing and captivating in their full radiance, the sparks flared twice and vanished.

“Huuu!”

He let out a turbid breath that crackled the air and raised gusts of wind, astonishing him.

“It seems I gained a lot on this trip to the Northwest than I expected.” His drastic rise in elemental energy stunned him. A task that took many magicians dozens of years to achieve was accomplished by him in one setting. He advanced from the third level of the First Elemental Stage to the First level of the Third Elemental Stage.

This was a stage that would automatically qualify him for the position of an elder in the Mistland Academy.

“I wonder how much she improved.” His sight turned to the woman in his arms. Even though he was in a meditative state, Crown Prince Lail was able to sense the changes in Laila’s body as the silver Liquid seeped into her body as well.

By the speed and rate at which her Realm Heart absorbed the elemental energy, he could tell that her talent level wasn’t any lower than his. Not for the first time, he wondered about her origin again.

An excited gleam appeared in his red eyes as he thoughtfully remarked.

“Whatever academy she is attending, it probably isn’t any lower than the Seven Academies of the Seven Realms. In that case, we will meet at the yearly Seven Academies Competition. At that time, I would like to see whether she is more powerful than me.”

Securing his hold on her motionless figure, he shifted his arms and laid her head against his chest. Now that she was out of danger, he felt more at ease and leisurely strolled through the white region, exploring as he went.

The trees that shattered in the process of their breakthrough were reduced to ash, leaving nothing but white soot behind. He sighed in regret at the wasted resource and continued deeper into the land.

The Black Serpent told him he might find an heirloom of the Magical Kilin in the tunnel. Although he had no hope in making such a discovery, at the moment, he had nothing better to do. Besides, his physical condition and elemental energy were in peak condition, making him fearless in encountering trouble.

“If I don’t take this opportunity to explore, test, and stabilize my Level 1, Stage three Elemental Flushing energy, in the future, I might never get the chance again.”

The students in the magical academies were at most level 3 magicians of the Elemental Drawing Stage. Lacking in battle experience and magic-wielding, they were anything but worthy opponents. With the restrictions of being fellow students and battling under practice exchange, he would never be able to unleash his full ability and find his weaknesses.

For that, true and deadly opponents like the magical beasts were necessary.

As such, with the unconscious female held in his arms, black spear in his hand, Crown Prince Lail strolled through the silent and still region in search of the Magical Kilin’s heirloom and opponents to test his abilities on.

Lightening Butterflies, accompanied by the melodious chitters of Fireflies, floated around him. Swift and ethereal in their flight, they released resplendence of silvery radiance that brightened his path.

Although he was alone, at that moment, Crown Prince Lail felt at peace and wholesome, his mind and heart in a serene state he didn’t expect would be possible for him.

After what felt like an entire day, he arrived before the entrance of an ancient cave engraved with various ancient writings and scrolls. Faint glimmers of light flashed intermittently between the words, seemingly emphasizing the importance of the words.

Crown Prince Lail frowned as he looked at the words, hesitation appearing in his heart as he glanced at the woman again. If he was alone, he wouldn’t have hesitated before entering the cave.

But, he was not alone.

There was a woman in his arms that he couldn’t bring himself to leave behind. A woman that earned his respect and trust.

Just as he was hesitating, the words on the cave flashed and entered his forehead, catching him by surprise. He hurriedly raised his mental barriers, preparing to defend against the foreign attack.

But instead of a fierce clash, he encountered floating words that merged and formed a picture. In the picture, he saw a flying beast spewing seas of flames as it scorched an entire realm. Miserable shrieks and cries for mercy rang out as the unarmed civilians of the realm, scattered apart in search of safety.

Cold sweat slid down his back and he shivered, an ominous feeling engulfing his mind. In the depth of his soul, Crown Prince Lail had the strangest notion that what he was seeing wasn’t only an image, but a premonition of an impending future.

“This…” What in the realms did this mean!?

The image ended with the destruction of the realm, black smoke and red foam cloaking the entire heaven in a hazy fog of death and despair. Long white threads of what he perceived to be soul threads floated amidst the red and black mist, converging into numerous ghostly shadows.

Thrown in chaos by what he saw, it took a while for Crown Prince Lail to return to his senses.

By the time his vision cleared, he was staring back at the black cave, the ancient writings and words disappeared, leaving behind only gloomy darkness.

“What was that? Was it a record of an ancient battle? If it was, who has the ability to inscribe such a scene on a cave?” His mind raced with various scenarios as a possibility after possibility popped up one after the other. For the individual to crave the words on the cave with such skill, they had to be Master Magicians.

The possibility of the craver being a magical beast never occurred to him. Because in his mind, a magical beast had no reason to leave behind a scene of the destruction their race had caused. This would only evoke the wrath and hatred of the humans, which wouldn’t be in their best interest.

“There is no other way. I have to enter the cave to see if I can find anything else. If all of that was only a record and a façade, then I wouldn’t be losing out on anything. But if it’s pointing towards an impending misfortune, I need to be prepared to face it.”

With a determined gleam in his eyes, Crown Prince Lail entered the black cave.

A pungent and repulsive stench entered his nostril and stimulated his eyes, causing them to tear in reaction. Crown Prince Lail tried to make out his surroundings with his obscured vision, his muscles tensing in preparation for any ambush or surprise attacks.

“This stench, it’s like the stench of a dead corpse kept inside a damp and wet area for an extended period of time.”

As the harbinger of the death, the battlefield was like second nature to him, making the collection of countless corpses his sickening trophy. Therefore, he was able to identify the horrid stench the moment it entered his nostrils.

“The only question is; how did the deepest cave of the Forbidden Zone, the Magical Kilin’s cave gain ahold of such a horrid stench?”

His vision was still blurry, and with his hands occupied, Crown Prince Lail was forced to blindly find his way around. He moved to the center of the cave and gently laid the woman on the ground. He stood back up and wiped his eyes with one hand while gripping his spear with the other.

Stoic and impassive, he scanned his surroundings.

Five breaths of time had not passed when he paused in disbelief.

“Is that…?”

His breath hitched and he wondered if he was seeing another image.