Chapter 104: Change of Heart [First Chapter!]

Scanoli's words sent a sudden jolt through Vere's heart. He stared in astonishment at the crystal in his hand, saying in disbelief, "Old man, these couldn't be..."

"Heh heh, indeed they are. For this place, I drew out all the power in my body and stored it temporarily in these crystals. It's a bit like how you mages like to store magic power in magic cores. Doing it this way prevents me from being suppressed by the power of the mist zone, while allowing me to store my energy proportionally in these crystals to be absorbed and used again when necessary. Of course, this method is rather troublesome, but it is indeed a good way, and well worth a try!"

Scanoli chuckled, tapping the bag in his hand. "The only problem, however, is that once I absorb all the power from the crystals, I will immediately be suppressed by the mist zone's power. Drawing the power out of the crystals is easy, but putting it back in is a completely different story."

"No kidding!"

Vere snorted. Just as Scanoli had said, this method was indeed similar to how mages stored the magic power they accumulated day-to-day into magic cores to make up for their depletion in battle. Yet, though effective, it was highly tedious; slowly infusing one's magic power into a core bit by bit was far more troublesome and mentally exhausting than effortlessly releasing it all at once.

"Which means you can only make a move when absolutely necessary, and you only get one shot?"

Vere understood Scanoli's meaning. From the very beginning, he had known the old man was hiding his true strength, but he never expected him to go to such lengths... Storing all of one's power elsewhere meant hiding one's greatest strength and exposing one's weakest side. What sane person would do such a thing? Who would even think of it?

*Crazy old coot!*

Vere muttered to himself, though a rare spark of admiration for the old man flickered in his heart—only a tiny bit, of course.

"By utilizing the power stored in the crystals, we won't trigger the suppression of the mist zone, and we can also use that power to ward off the freezing cold. With this method, entering the depths of the small valley shouldn't be too difficult."

As Scanoli spoke, he handed Nasa a crystal identical to the one Vere held. One could not look down on this tiny crystal; though the amount of power inside seemed small, its density was staggeringly high. Clearly, Scanoli had compressed it deliberately. If the power inside this tiny crystal were to erupt completely, it would easily match the full-force strike of a Great Mage!

Looking at it the other way around, that meant Scanoli's own strength was at least at the level of a Magister!

Who would have thought this old man was hiding himself so deeply? A perfect display of playing the pig to eat the tiger. If Vere hadn't already harbored suspicions about Scanoli, even he might have been completely fooled!

Vere sighed inwardly. Looking at the crystal in his hand, he could clearly sense the astonishing power contained within through his perception. He clenched his fist tightly around it.

At that moment, Vere suddenly felt a sting of provocation!

Yes, provocation. Although no one had intended it, Vere couldn't help but feel provoked. A similar thought had crossed his mind when he first saw Phrosis, but he hadn't paid it much attention back then. His self-confidence—his absolute belief in his own magical talent—assured him that he would one day surpass that woman. Even now, he remained steadfast in his belief. Yet, at this very moment, a nagging feeling arose within him: his current rate of progress was simply too slow!

In truth, Vere had progressed from a first-tier mage to his current eighth-tier status in less than two months. Even for a rare magical genius, such a feat would take at least a year or two, and for an ordinary person, it would take five or six. To call him a genius among geniuses would not be an exaggeration, yet Vere still felt it was too slow!

This was not because he was greedy or overly arrogant, but because he had not yet adjusted to the contrast in his identity.

Once the pride of his generation and the continent's youngest Divine Descender, he now had to train from scratch to regain his former strength. It was like a wealthy merchant who had built a massive empire suddenly being forced to start over empty-handed. Though his business acumen remained unchanged, the sheer contrast between starting penniless and starting with massive capital was enough to deal a blow to his mindset.

If Phrosis had only given him a vague sense of urgency, Scanoli had completely ignited the spark within him!

Get stronger! Keep growing stronger, keep transforming, and stand once again at the pinnacle of the world, just like before!

"Old man!"

Just as Scanoli turned around at Vere's call, something flew through the air and smacked him right on the head.

"Ouch! What was that?... Huh? Isn't this..."

Scanoli grimaced and rubbed his head. Holding the crystal Vere had thrown back, he looked at him with a bizarre expression. "Kid, what is the meaning of this?"

"Heh, nothing much. I've just been greedy since I was a kid. When I see something this good, I'm afraid I won't be able to help myself and might just pocket it!"

Vere chuckled. Ignoring Scanoli's strange look, he waved his wand. Instantly, a dark red glow began to radiate from his skin. Standing right next to him, Scanoli immediately felt a wave of warmth emanating from Vere's body.

"Alright, let's go!"

With a casual wave of his arm, Vere took the lead and entered the small valley. Behind him, Scanoli narrowed his eyes slightly, a faint smile playing at the corner of his lips. "This kid..."

"High Priest, is this really alright?"

Nasa walked over to Scanoli, frowning slightly. By now, his dizziness had subsided significantly. Although his body still felt somewhat weak, he had at least recovered some of his strength.

"Heh, you know what, Nasa? This kid is actually very similar to you. You might not see it from his appearance or temperament, but that pride in his bones absolutely refuses to let him lose to anyone... Interesting. Very interesting!"

Scanoli let out a strange, cackling laugh and gestured to Nasa, following Vere right into the small valley.