Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 624 Awakening the Dragon Bloodline

The entire Golden Crown Mountain has been transformed into an arena for hunting down dark wizards, where terrifying magical creatures roam.

Yunze Wetland has a strong natural ecosystem, and the Magic Forest is full of magical creatures.

Within the towering forests, miasma spontaneously forms, within which numerous powerful magical creatures roam: Stormbirds, Thunder Beasts, Frost Giants, Lava Two-Headed Dogs, Earth Dragons, Sphinx Behemoths…

These magical creatures are practically going mad in their fight for that Dragon View Peach King.

If every magical creature has its own innate abilities, then the human ability is wisdom, which is a high degree of socialization, language ability, and a more fundamental way of thinking.

That kind of intelligence, comparable to that of humans, is definitely not as simple as becoming an intelligent being.

Instead, by consuming the Dragon View Peach King, one can gain the special ability to transform into a human and acquire humanity!
Humanity is something that high-level magical creatures pursue, because the greatest advantage of having special characteristics is that they can learn magic, unlike other magical creatures that can only rely on their bloodline inheritance, or devour valuable food to nourish themselves, or eat certain special plants to obtain certain special resources to enhance their bloodline potential.

The Peach Garden is an immense magical entity that has undergone four forgings, thus possessing numerous functions. It can almost provide magical creatures with an opportunity to acquire and embrace civilization!
In the early stages of a beast tide ecosystem, it wouldn't have such a large capacity!
The remaining second-ring dark wizards of the Twin Demon Realms who had not escaped showed fear on their faces as they looked terrified at the crowned wizard in the sky.

"Must you exterminate us all, you white wizards!"

"She's too ruthless. We only wanted to steal a few things, you hateful white wizards. You've driven us to thieves, and now you want to wipe us out completely!"

"Who can withstand this immense magic?"

……

Inside the Cloud Arena, Douglas, disguised as an ordinary wizard, spent three thousand magic stones to buy a seat and blended into the crowd to protect himself.

The voice of the Witch-King Lagmamon appeared in Douglas's ears. 'So, my decision to have you buy seats to watch the game wasn't wrong, was it?'

'Only by sitting here can you see the level of the Yunze Wetland Jinmian Mountain area. Only then can I see the level of this era…'

"In my opinion, you need to clear your name as soon as possible. Your current fake identity isn't enough; you need to integrate into the white wizarding society as quickly as possible. The white wizarding society of this era is the mainstream civilization."

Lagmamon the Wizard King said, 'Moreover, I was wrong before. My power in this era is only equivalent to that of a third-ring wizard without crown magic.'

'The power of the crown magic is far greater than I imagined. Even if I summoned the kingdoms of the former witch kings, they would be easily crushed by that crown magic.'

The difference between the two is like the difference between an egg and a block of iron.

Douglas whispered, "Teacher, what should I do?"

The voice of the Witch-King Lagmamon appeared in his ears. 'You have completely completed the reversal of the five elements; now you must prepare to become a second-circle wizard. At the same time, I will do everything in my power to help you, for I also need to understand the magic of this era through your assistance.'

'Transform my kingdom's domain into crown magic. If my magical kingdom still existed, my kingdom's domain might rival crown magic... No, that's actually impossible, because some fundamental rules of this world have changed. In this era, the upper limit of a kingdom's domain is not as high as that of crown magic...'

"Furthermore, the Kingdom Domain is more like a primitive version of Crown Magic. My Kingdom Domain requires a network of ley lines and the Kingdom's faith, while Crown Magic represents a wizard reaching an extremely high level of magical skill within a small area, capable of overwhelming all similar magic in the surrounding area, making it the crown jewel of its kind."

King Lagmamon seemed extremely envious of the Crown Magic, repeatedly emphasizing its power. "My kingdom's domain cannot even match the Great Magic after four forgings. In our time, we only had permanent defensive fields; there was no Great Magic, nor Crown Magic."

"In the Age of Stars, a third-ring wizard was already a powerful wizard king, but in your era, even in the Cloud Marsh Wetlands, an ordinary third-ring wizard is only of mid-to-high rank; a third-ring throne wizard is the high rank. But the real power lies with the fourth-ring wizards..."

'The fate of the wizarding world is determined by wizards of even higher rings. I just don't know if the once-powerful Black Sun Tower still exists. I remain vigilant, but it seems the Black Sun Tower has vanished.'

Lagmamon, the Witch-King, said, "I never imagined I would awaken in this golden age of magic. It's truly my good fortune. Douglas, if you believe in me, I will make you a shining new star of this era, allowing you to stand alongside those geniuses and compete on the same stage."

'You also want to... stand alongside those geniuses, don't you?'

Douglas felt a surge of excitement, but also a touch of inferiority, as he recalled the battle between Locke and Antoine.

Can he really compete with those geniuses?

Join that circle and pursue the truth with them?
The voice of the Witch-King Lagmamon appeared in Douglas's ears. "With my help, you can do it. And not just join that circle, but become its leader, and define what excellence is."

"Become the brightest star of this era. Douglas, you must keep going. The higher you climb, the more I will know, and then I will know whether the Tower of the Black Sun truly exists in this era. Therefore, our interests are intertwined."

Douglas nodded.

He was actually very bothered by the fact that a spirit had entered his body, and he had no way to deal with it.

He had secretly tried many methods while King Lagmamon was asleep, hoping to find a way to actively seal King Lagmamon and truly control his own destiny.

But they all failed.

King Lagmamon never mentioned this matter after each awakening, as if he had never discovered it.

Douglas regarded King Lagmamon as his teacher and benefactor, but as a wizard, he also had to be wary of King Lagmamon.

What if the Witch King Lagmamon's ultimate goal is to resurrect himself using his body?
All the previous training he received may have been solely for the purpose of developing an outstanding physical body.

Douglas asked in a low voice, "Teacher, why did you tell me not to take action before? If I had killed some wizards from the Twin Demon Realms, I could have received military merits in the Demon Realm War. It would have made it easier for me to clear my name."

“I haven’t done many things before. If I have military merits, I might be able to clear my name.”

King Lagmamon whispered, "I told you not to make a move because the wizards from the Twin Demon Realms just now stole certain traits from many wizards like you."

Douglas was taken aback. "The same as me?"

The voice of the Witch-King Lagmamon appeared in his ears. "Yes, it seems that I am not the only one who has awakened from the tomb of the Age of Stars. Many of my former colleagues are also awakening from eternal darkness, for some reason. The power that buried the entire Age of Stars is weakening."

"These beings, in the same state as me, parasitize the bodies of certain wizards. On the first day of your participation in the sports festival, I sensed their presence in many wizards. Moreover, I noticed that the Twin Demon Realms' main target just now was those wizards."

"They put those wizards into an echoing state, and at the same time used this state to remove the past spirits that were parasitizing those wizards' bodies. Of course, this also caused some fatal damage to those wizards, which should make them unable to move forward anymore."

Douglas was secretly surprised.

So that's what happened. He was in so much danger just now.

"However, you don't need to be afraid. Those wizards who were captured likely only possessed the symbiotic essence of a second-circle wizard from my era—either the [Grand Earl of Wizards] or the [Earl of Wizards]."

'Anyway, those people from the Twin Demon Realms couldn't detect my presence just now.'

Douglas asked worriedly, "But why do the Twin Demon Realms know of your existence? Could they be the Tower of the Black Sun?"

Lagmamon the Witch-King said, “Absolutely impossible. The Tower of the Black Sun would not steal. Perhaps the Twin Demon Realms have discovered an ancient secret and want to possess it for themselves, and gain power from it. In any case, we must work together, otherwise none of us will get what we want.”

"Douglas."

Douglas whispered, "Teacher, I understand."

Douglas felt immense pressure upon learning that the Twin Demon Realms were targeting people like him.

He wants to become a second-circle wizard, and make those who used to look down on him know how to respect him!
Therefore, he cannot be captured by the Twin Demon Realms and become part of the dark wizards' conspiracy.

King Lagmamon said, "I need you to find a way to join Mount Golden Crown. That way, you can access many things and also protect yourself with the help of Mount Golden Crown. By the way, that little guy needs your help now, so go and help him directly."

"This way, we can create a positive connection."

"He has the blood of the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat. I have encountered this type of wizard before and know that Three-Eyed Tiger Cats need special star power to become Three-Eyed Tiger Cat Kings and have the potential to become second-ring level creatures."

"Here, take this jade cat's eye charm. Give it to that little guy."

King Lagmamon whispered, "I've also confirmed that one of the treasures I left behind is in Mount Golden Crown. Only by joining Mount Golden Crown can you possibly obtain that extremely important treasure."

"Being on good terms with that five-headed hydra publisher will be very beneficial to you. Especially... his teacher, who is very powerful on Mount Golden Crown. If possible, you should make Catherine the Throne your teacher."

Douglas was incredibly nervous. "Is this even possible?"

Lagmamon said in a low voice, “Originally it was impossible. But with my help, it is possible. And the first step you need to take is to befriend that little fellow. I’ve seen the way Catherine looks at him; perhaps he himself doesn’t realize how important he is to that throne.”

……

Just as Locke was doing his best to get the forest sanctuary into the starlight, he heard a wizard call his name.

Then, a young wizard dressed in many clothes and wearing a hood was seen standing next to Arena 1.

Locke paused for a moment, then quickly noticed something familiar about his attire.

The wizard threw a jade-colored stone, resembling a cat's eye, at Locke.

Locke looked at the cat's eye stone in his hand.

I felt the throbbing in my own blood.

Wizard Douglas said to Locke, “Let’s be friends. I am Douglas, and this is an emerald cat’s eye. I think you might need it.”

In an instant, Locke sensed that within the Night Meteor, a constellation was casting its star power towards him—the star power of Leo Minor.

After obtaining the power of this ancient constellation, his three-eyed tiger-cat bloodline seemed to have a lock unlocked by a key, and certain shackles were broken.

Leo Minor is located between Ursa Major and Leo.

Meanwhile, another bloodline within Locke's body, a bloodline that had already taken shape during the previous battle, was also unlocked under the stimulation of the Leo Minor constellation's power. It began to greedily absorb the constellation's power, constantly improving its bloodline level.

The bloodlines of the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat and the mysterious Dragon Clan have been continuously enhancing their magical pressure during the process of improvement.

The mysterious dragon bloodline evolved from the first stage of vaporization to the first stage of liquefaction, and then from the first stage of liquefaction to the first stage of crystallization...

The dragon shadow behind Locke became increasingly solid, and it had transformed into a three-headed golden dragon. The dragon shadow seemed unable to control itself, constantly destroying its surroundings and even itself.

This caused Locke to fall into a self-destructive state, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Douglas was stunned. "Teacher, something seems wrong. What's going on? You just told me to give him the jade cat's eye, why is he acting so strangely?"

King Lagmamon seemed very nervous. 'Leo Minor is a demonic star, and it has the power to unlock potential. The combination of these two seems to have caused a mutation in that little fellow's bloodline. We may have meant well but done more harm than good.'

"Moreover, his bloodline... carries the aura of the Black Sun Tower." "I am absolutely certain. One branch of the Black Sun Tower possesses this very spiritual aura. The Demon Dragon Clan has always been... royalty of the Black Sun Tower."

'He carries the aura of an incomplete demonic dragon. So, the Black Sun Tower truly exists in this era. Damn it, I've tried my best to avoid it, but I still got caught up in it!'

'The Tower of the Black Sun would never allow the bloodline of the Demonic Dragon to roam freely outside. In my time, any Demonic Dragon bloodline outside the Tower's control would be immediately exterminated. Any Demonic Dragon offspring with impure bloodlines would also be destroyed instantly. I just don't know why they haven't made a move against this little guy… Have they not yet discovered him?'

Or is the current state of the Tower of the Black Sun rather strange?

The Witch-King Lagmamon seemed to be conflicted. 'How could he have dragon blood in him? Is he a trap set by the Tower of the Black Sun...?'

'Douglas, perhaps we should leave the Golden Crown…'

The next moment, a wave of demonic pressure attacked Douglas, and the Witch King Lagmamon had no choice but to pretend to disappear in order to avoid being exposed.

And the witch Catherine descended upon this place.

She frowned as she looked at Locke, who was in a state of spiritual self-destruction, then gave Douglas a cold look. "What did you do to him?"

"A black wizard in disguise?"

Douglas's body stiffened; in that instant, he felt the call of death. "Your Majesty... I gave him the Emerald Cat's Eye. I didn't mean to harm him; I heard that the Emerald Cat's Eye can help Three-Eyed Tiger Cat wizards activate their bloodline and gain the potential to advance to the second ring."

“I have absolutely no hostility.”

“I used to be a dark wizard, but I’ve long since turned to good. I want to join Mount Golden Crown…”

Catherine the Witch looked at him coldly. Just as Douglas was wondering what fate awaited him, Catherine the Witch suddenly spoke. "With your qualifications, joining Golden Crown Mountain won't be easy. If you want to join, you'll need to take an exam."

"I will arrange an entrance exam and a special interview for you. If you pass, you can work under me; if you fail, I will transfer you to the wizard prison. That's all."

Douglas was on the verge of tears. He had only wanted to do Locke a favor, but who knew it would turn out like this.

Douglas could only let the witcher control him, while bracing himself before the witch Catherine and saying, "Your Majesty, I will pass the entrance exam for the Golden Crown Mountain."

The witch Catherine turned around and looked worriedly at the bloodline mutation that was happening to Locke.

A surprised voice came from Jinlong's ear. "It's actually the World-Destroying Demon Dragon Clan."

"It is the Destruction Dragon Clan from the True Dragon Clan."

"No wonder I disliked that aura about this kid so much before. The ancestor of the Destruction Dragon Clan was a golden dragon, but from him onwards, all his descendants have been Destruction Dragons. I just don't know which type of Destruction Dragon this kid is."

"Three heads? That's incredibly rare."

The witch Catherine said, "Leo the Lesser can indeed stimulate bloodline potential. Many second-circle bloodline wizards use the power of this constellation to strengthen their own bloodlines. But what about him?"

Jinlong Fafnir said, "Leo Minor is inherently a demonic star, and it also has the special function of stimulating bloodline potential. The combination of the two awakens the power of his bloodline. However, the demonic dragon race is very evil and has the characteristic of self-destruction."

"Therefore, his spirit wanted to destroy itself."

"Moreover, his bloodline doesn't seem to have been innate, but rather formed through his own efforts, most likely his own. It's currently incomplete, even impure. At this moment, it's perfectly normal for him to want self-destruction."

"If he can't get past this hurdle, not only will he not obtain the bloodline of the Demon Dragon, but he himself will be destroyed. The bloodline of the Demon Dragon race is not so easy to be tainted."

"I advise you not to meddle in other people's business."

The witch Catherine said, "Locke is my last disciple, how could I possibly abandon him? He has perfectly inherited my sacred dragon lineage. This matter has nothing to do with dragon blood, I cannot simply ignore him."

"Fafner, you are a dragon. What do you think is a good way to help him get out of this state?"

Jinlong frowned and looked at the witch Catherine, because at this moment Catherine had almost completely resolved the issue of bloodline possession.

She spent six months spending every day with Locke Augustine, stimulating his bloodline.

Then, the moment she regarded Locke Augustine as her important student, and her feelings of caring for a younger generation as a member of the red dragon bloodline merged with her own, she completely took control of the dragon bloodline within her.

She was a terrible witch.

In just six months, the final flaw of the true dragon bloodline was overcome.

Jinlong said, "The most important thing is to awaken his qualities as a wizard. Let those wizard qualities suppress the qualities that destroy the dragon race."

"Shoot him an arrow, try the Peach Blossom Thorn Arrow. But if you do that, you won't be able to maintain the full power of your ultimate magic. Do you want some dark wizards to escape?"

"Catherine the Witch, thanks to your scheme, you will now become the vice-chair of the Academic Committee, and you will also gain significant influence on Mount Golden Crown. Is it necessary to sacrifice some of your power for the sake of becoming a first-circle wizard?"

Catherine the Witch did not hesitate. “Fafner, you are ridiculous. Don’t try to test me. Power comes from people, not positions. Locke himself is part of the foundation of my power.”

The witch Catherine sighed. "That former dark wizard who gave Locke the emerald cat's eye stone, if I hadn't seen that his magical pressure was quite good and that he was a talented person, he would have been dead in my rage just now."

“If he passes the entrance exam, I will expose his identity and send him to the wizard prison. If he fails but is close to passing, I will grant him a favor and let him join.”

The witch Catherine dispelled some of the powerful magic, giving many dark wizards an opportunity to escape. At the same time, she diverted some of her energy, transforming it into a peach-blossom thorn arrow, which she shot towards Locke's forehead.

The witch Catherine looked at Locke and said, "Your mere dragon bloodline is nothing but a tool. Locke, wake up. Don't forget how you got to where you are today."

"Do you want to be destroyed by the mere spirit of a demonic dragon and forget everything you've gained along the way?"

"Awaken and let the dragon bloodline truly take shape."

"This is a tribulation you must overcome."

At this moment, Locke's mind was in a dark place. Looking at the terrifying dragon in front of him, Locke felt a sense of unease.

'Unexpectedly, the mysterious dragon bloodline has reached this point, a dead end.'

'This is a path of self-destruction. Now, I can't even be sure if this dragon bloodline truly originates from the Augustin family. Shouldn't the Augustin family bloodline be that of a golden two-headed dragon? Could it be that my ancestor once had a love affair with such a terrifying being?'

At this moment, Locke felt a pang of regret. He shouldn't have used archaeological magic to strengthen the dragon bloodline and accelerate its formation, which had led him to this desperate situation.

He had just tried to destroy the dragon in front of him, but all his magic had no effect on it.

Just as Locke was at a loss, he suddenly looked up and saw a light appear in the dark sky.

The light was like a falling arrow.

“Peach Blossom Arrow…wait, this isn’t the real world, is it?” Locke looked at the terrifying dragon in front of him. Its body was enormous, and it was making the same movements as him, looking at him in the same way.

The dragon seemed to be in great pain; its body was incomplete, with only a third of its body remaining. Not only was it only half a body, but even its wings were broken and incomplete.

This made the dragon want to destroy itself.

Locke then realized that this was his inner world.

The dragon before him was himself, and he himself was also himself.

Which one is actually me?
Both are, and neither are.

Locke recalled a key point from advanced meditation: the concept of "no self" or "non-self."

The self in one's mind is not the true self, but even if it is a state of selflessness that is not the true self, it is still wrong.

The true self exists in the deepest part of this abyss of the soul, in the essence behind all illusions.

At this moment, Locke once again transformed into a gravitational wave of the natural plane. At the same time, he held the Peach Arch Thorn Arrow in his hand and reached out to catch one of the Peach Arch Thorn Arrows that the witch Catherine had shot at him from the sky.

He drew his bow and aimed an arrow at the demonic dragon before him.

The dragon itself was furious, as if it believed that Locke was terribly wrong not to commit suicide with it and destroy the incomplete dragon bloodline.

The dragon roared at Locke repeatedly, demanding that he destroy himself.

Locke looked at him coldly. "I am a wizard, not a dragon."

"The dragon bloodline is nothing more than a tool for me!"

"I am who I am!"

The next moment, the Peach-Arrow Thorn Arrow, imbued with the divine dragon's spirit, shot out, piercing through the demonic dragon's spirit, causing the demonic dragon to naturally collapse.

Locke instantly regained control of his body and suppressed his self-destructive spirit, allowing the dragon bloodline to permit his incompleteness.

This allows the dragon bloodline to begin evolving further.

This is equivalent to using the Peach Blossom Arrow and the selflessness and non-self of advanced meditation to dispel a self-destruction mechanism of the Demon Dragon bloodline—that is, not allowing the Demon Dragon bloodline to approach, but also preventing the appearance of incomplete Demon Dragon bloodlines.

Because of this mechanism, all bloodlines that are close to the dragon's bloodline in nature should have self-destructed.

However, Locke successfully broke through this limitation by leveraging the achievements of the wizarding civilization.

In the real world, Locke knelt on the ground, panting heavily.

This time, I almost committed suicide; my magic was in complete chaos.

But he succeeded.

Locke looked at the witch Catherine who had walked up to him. "Thank you, teacher. If it weren't for you, that dragon would have successfully killed me."

The witch Catherine curled her lips into a slight smile and shook her head. "A mere dragon cannot kill you or me."

(End of this chapter)