A Sorcerer's Journey - Chapter 81

Chapter 81: The Greedy Flame Giant

“When you’re in the Holy Tower tryouts, don’t let me down.” Millie didn’t take on Grimm by force and only said this. She had treated Grimm as one of the top ten students of the whole six academies.

Grimm went into shock. “You’re expecting my performance? Are you numbed by your ice to say something so haughty?”

<pre><code> Three months later. “It’s done.” Murmured Grimm in his tent after having completed his meditation. He then held out a finger and a small water ball formed on it. Elements of water and fire were easily controlled and had great affinity. And when the two elements could be utilized using ten times of the lever power, then the Destructive Force of Fire Blast Sorcery could be started on. But this shouldn’t be on top priority. To research into the destructive force of the water and fire elements, one should start with the boosting function of two affinity elements. And thus, Grimm chose to aim for water and thunder. (the combination are supposed to be wind &amp; fire, water and thunder, earth and water, earth &amp; life) Grimm’s affinity with thunder was not strong, but he had two months of research on it and he was confident that he could accomplish the inscription of the thunder matrix in two months. By then, he could study the element boosting sorcery which was a rather difficult one and might cost years to be completed. </code></pre>

“Grimm, are you gonna take part in the meeting?” asked Lefay from the other side of the tent who just was done with her knowledge learning.

For the last six months, the students from the six academies had all arrived at this range, and had executed numerous attacks at the 19th section. As a result, over 160 resource points had been occupied, and the remaining more than 30 were waiting to be exploited.

And when all of the points were occupied, then our enemies would have no battle base to gather the forces. When the time came, we would chase and kill them until they reached a number that the sorcerers of the 19th section wanted.

Grimm shook his head, and said lightly, “You know it. I’m not accustomed to being in such things. I’m fully reassured with you being our representative.”

“En.” Lefay nodded and then left the tent.

Over 100 students had arrived at this range, and four out of the top ten students of the sox academies had also turned up—Millie, Yates, Ardas, and someone from the Bone Bell Tower School. The students also brought with them some interjections and had laid them in a dozen or so sites to make traps like the exploding mushroom. They also did the work of digging bomb shelters and a lookout.

Defenses-wise, this place was invulnerable.

A long while later, Lefay turned back to the tent and said lightly: “Millie and Ardas had led several teams of students out of this place. This range is no longer the frontline but an outpost.”

“Sure, it’s been quieter for the past month.” Grimm fingered through his sorcery book notes as he responded casually.

For the past few months in this range, Lefay’s wound had gotten much better. The withered skin on her face was recovering.

“Grimm, would the 19th section students build an organization like what we did with the Death Sail League? You know, when there were not many of them left.”

“Certainly. Although we don’t know what kind of punishment would be incurred if they lost this battle, the sorcerers on their side would urge them to spare no efforts. And they’ve got two advantages we don’t have. One is unity and the other is that they could send out protectors for more times than we could.”

Grimm had become a little drowsy with his sorceries. But he suddenly turned sober upon hearing this causal analysis, a thought coming to mind.

“Is there news of our side sending the protectors?” Grimm asked.

“No, we haven’t. But our enemy has deployed them for six times. And the protectors killed four of our men, and another two managed to escape from them,” answered Lefay indifferently.

Grimm’s eyes brightened, and said: “Our enemy is using up their chances of dispatching the protectors. This might make them extremely vulnerable.”

“Why is that?”

“You forgot? We set up the league in the ship under the leadership of the five lords. Without you and the four others, the students wouldn’t be gathered. The key to it was a strong leadership.” Grimm responded, emphasizing “five lords”.

“Why are you being nostalgic? ‘The five lords’ was coined by some student who didn’t even know a thing about sorcery. It was not us that created it!” Lefay added, “But if it were me, I wouldn’t go with this Lord of Vine if I had a say in it. I’d call myself…”

“Stop there, my queen. Let’s get back on the topic. Since there would be leaders in their organization, then we could send our protectors altogether to kill them all or at least most of them, then what would befall the students? It would be like the students in the ship without your five leaders…”

Lefay smiled and said: “Your analysis is very constructive! And unlike them, we of Section Twelve has no leaders at all. We encounter fights, small and big, all the time, so there is this established creed—everyone is the leader of himself or herself.”

“If I could think of this, then there is no reason Peranos couldn’t.”

Lefay became relieved hearing this, and then she smiled. “It was seemingly bad luck when we were sent to this frontline in the beginning, and now the momentum has been turned. We could stay here and be at ease with the defense. And you personally could focus on experiments. You’re living by the minute because of those sorceries. Wait a minute, let me think…you’re supposed to be studying the two twigs?”

Grimm smiled and pulled out the two twigs.

Two months later, Grimm succeeded in inscribing the thunder magical matrix and started tap into how water and thunder could play a role of boosting.

One year passed by, the 12th section had taken hold of over 180 resource points and the target of each student occupying 30 points was reached. However, they were deterred by the protectors on the other side to launch further strikes. Besides, large scale offense were nearly impossible to carry out as they were restricted by the special relationships between the students—there was no strong leadership and no large scale offensives unless they were motivated by interests.

Skirmishes between the two sections surfaced from time to time but the 12th held absolute advantage. As time passed by, the 19th were being enlightened and formed a league called “20 Drops of Blood”, which had become a topic among the 12th students, and under its organization and coordination, they were crawling back into the game.

Five years later, Grimm’s body constitution had reached 108 points. But his body had gotten used to the deadly Evil Eye Kasmira, and without a laboratory to develop new poisons, he ceased this cultivation. But he would spend some time each day to do some physical activities to improve his physique, strength, and activity.

<pre><code> Nine years later. In this nearly forgotten ore range, about twenty students were in their defensive positions and Grimm’s team also stayed in here to take care of Grimm who had been studying his sorcery. The students here had been used to this safe and easy life in the rear. The battle was going on in the frontline. Not here. They would just need to be on daily patrols, checking the interjections and the traps. And two students had even married and had a simple wedding. During the celebration, all of the students joined. Grimm had given the couple a spare vial of meditation medicine as a blessing gift. No sight of 19th section students for three years. This place had become a pure home front. One day in a clearing of the range, Grimm chanted the spells carefully trying to outline the element creature in his mind by using the method of “language resonance”. Also by taking advantage of the “motivator”, the fire element and knowledge about souls, the creature was around the corner. In a fluctuation of magical waves, a creature made of dark fire gradually manifested. It was like a newly born baby, looking around at the strange world. And this baby was emotionally connected to Grimm. It was a three-meter-high giant in the shape of an irregular human with a humpback. His armoured skin, which was made up of water and thunder elements, flowed as the black flame blazed. His snail eyes were burning with a clearer light, and now it was scanning around cruelly. There was a huge mouth on either side of his body. One was deploring and the other was yelling. Judged by the interaction in Grimm’s mind, he began to assess his abilities. “Basic physical offense power lies between 100 and 220 points. Element attack at around 170. The two mouths? En? One is to swallow souls? And the other was to eat hatred? He could understand its ability to eat souls, because the motivator belonged to that “Devil Lord”—the creature from foreign lands who had the same ability. But why could it devour hatred? An ability related to emotions confused him. However, with its basic physical properties, this new element creature would be ranked in the second level among the top ten students in the six academies. If its soul/hatred eating abilities could be explored… Grimm watched and learned a follow-up ability of the element animal activation sorcery from Yates. After a strong vibration of magical waves. A two-meter-long, blue sword appeared in its hand. Grimm stared at this element animal that he had spent eleven years building and then murmured. “From now on, you’ll be called the Greedy Flame Giant. I’ll explore your soul/hatred eating abilities some other day.” Element animals had their own slight, primitive will. It was the slightest enlightened part. The Greedy Flame Giant yelled in his mind. Grimm dispelled his own giant and said, thoughtfully: “Since the boosting capacities of water and thunder have been done studying, and the element animal is created. It’s time to increase the nine-time lever function to ten and then it would be the Destructive Force of Fire Blast Sorcery.” “The two twigs are rare signs and will be etched in my soul. By then, I’ll decide how to use thunder based on the twig’s properties.” Thinking about this, Grimm concealed his good mood, and spent an hour patrolling around the perimeter as usual before returning to the tent. The physical exercise was reaping benefits in increasing his constitution too.</code></pre>