Cornflower Witch

Chapter 176 The Rise of the Wave

"Should geniuses stay together with other geniuses to promote mutual growth, or should geniuses lead a group of ordinary people and play a greater role as the core?"

Inside the towering castle tower, several people sat around a spacious long table, discussing the recent notice from the association. A wizard in a bright yellow robe stood by the window, asking the people behind him questions.

"If this were within our Knights Order, the answer would have been reached long ago: let such a genius lead a group of people so that they can better fulfill their role," the knight seated at the head of the table replied.

“However, in my opinion, only when multiple geniuses come together can we pool our wisdom and create the best and most outstanding works.” Another muscular man had a different idea.

Soon after, the knight tapped the table lightly.

"Now the association headquarters has given us their reply, approving our application. They said they will reduce the commission on material supplies for the next three years and will also allocate some resources to us to help local students grow."

"However, they also made a request, saying they wanted to transfer Siltia away."

"why?"

"It's very simple. Those big shots think that our land is too comfortable and not suitable for people to grow. They say that if it stays too long, it will become useless."

"The conflict thirty years ago caused many of the association's core third and fourth-tier members to be injured or killed. Now the association urgently needs to replenish its combat power and does not have much patience."

"According to our intelligence informants in the central mainland, the Mage Alliance has carried out large-scale reforms in the past decade. They have begun to open schools in every city and provide interest-free loans to some poor students, as long as they agree to serve the Mage Alliance after completing their studies."

"Through this method, they replenished their ranks with a large number of new recruits and continued to develop their steam machinery day and night. It is said that several mines in the Candela Mountains have been emptied out."

"The 'Harp Flower Alliance' in the East has begun to bring together our Woodland Association and the Sea Cliff Blood Clan in the North, preparing to join forces to counterbalance the Mage Alliance."

“The Silver Bird Tower, a well-known organization within the ‘Mage Alliance,’ developed a new core spell called ‘Mystic Astronomical Clock’ three years ago. By using this spell to reach the third rank, one can cast three spells that are not weakened by the ‘Mystic Astronomical Clock’. If one advances to the sixth rank, one can cast all twelve spells attached to the ‘Mystic Astronomical Clock’.”

"They have begun selecting geniuses from all over the world to teach this new advanced secret technique."

"In contrast, our Woodland Association's most famous advanced secret technique was the 'Star Prayer Ritual' developed by the Meteor Witch. Upon reaching the third tier, one could choose a spell ability and gain a 3x power boost. At the sixth tier, the power boost was increased to 27x. If one reached the seventh tier, one could push the power of a spell to a terrifying level, directly piercing through the Floating Cloud Continent."

"Back then, the Meteor Witch used this secret technique to directly destroy the lizardman kingdom on the southern edge of the continent, leaving behind a notorious reputation."

"However, learning this secret technique depends too much on talent, so much so that since that great witch, only two witches have mastered it, and even they did not eventually reach the level of the Meteor Witch."

"Our association has now relaxed restrictions on cross-organizational learning of secret arts, but the exchange of academic experience is far less frequent and smooth than that of the Mage Alliance."

"This has caused us to fall behind in many aspects."

“That’s not how it works, and the situation is completely different,” the scholar who had been sitting silently in a corner of the hall said, adjusting his glasses before explaining.

"When mages communicate, they only need to discuss specific rune formulas, core structures, spell incantations, etc. These are like rigorously constructed, extremely precise instruments. If one link is missing, others cannot replicate it."

"Moreover, if it can be perfectly reproduced, then the person who reproduced it must have followed the path of a mage and become one of them." "Our Forest Association's various organizations are quite complex, many of which were upgraded from former industry guilds."

"Just as the 'Golden Hammer' was originally the blacksmith guild of the Cavern City, the 'Holy White Knights Hall' was originally the royal knight order of the Blazing Sun Empire, except that the Blazing Sun Empire no longer exists."

"The witches and some spirits were originally members of the 'Moon Council,' but were the losers in the competition for the 'Radiant Moon' celestial position."

"The various organizations within the Forest Association have very different compositions and a wide range of backgrounds, so even if you want to communicate, many things are not interchangeable."

"In its early days, the Mage Alliance created extremely unified standards due to its philosophy, including rune formats, arcane grades, and academy organizational divisions. Their focus on the three aspects of 'Castle,' 'Secret Words,' and 'Golden Steam' is unimaginable to others."

"It's not just our Woodland Association; since the rise of the Mage Alliance, it has been constantly expanding, squeezing out the space for many traditional forces to operate."

"In addition, there is another point to mention. Because of the struggle for the position of 'Radiant Moon' during the Eighth Era, many of the original traditions of the Fourth Continent were lost after the great war. We are no longer ahead in terms of resources, knowledge, and secret techniques. This is also why we are relatively powerless against the Mage Alliance."

"The Mage Alliance has also tried to expand its influence on other continents, but the results have been very limited, especially the Sun Dynasty on the First Continent. It is a prosperous empire granted by the Sun Dragon and has unified the entire continent. It simply cannot accommodate the expansion of any other organization or faction."

"Secret techniques, resources, and talent are all vying for by various factions on the Fourth Continent. In order to revitalize the southern region, the association has now relaxed its control and restrictions on the various southern countries."

"So you mean the South will soon face civil war in the next few years, is that right?" The wizard turned around.

"Yes, according to the above, it is necessary to merge many small countries to establish a unified large country, so as to better allocate resources."

"Many royal families in the world today have heard the news and are actively preparing for war. Even if they are not preparing for war, they are considering marriage alliances to deal with the coming chaos."

"War will bring certain losses, but it will also create many opportunities to remove those nobles who were originally incompetent from their posts and give high positions to capable people."

After listening, the leading knight shook his head.

"The situation that they were unwilling to change for so many years has finally come to a head. It seems that the pressure from the Mage Alliance has threatened the foundation of the Woodland Association."

"We also need to prepare early."

"Regarding Hilti, I plan to negotiate with the association headquarters for another six months. If you want to win her over and show goodwill, try to do so within these six months. After that, we will have no choice but to release her." The knight commander made the final decision, and everyone else in the hall nodded in agreement.

"Six months... I never thought we'd be in such a hurry."

Many trainees spend their first year in the woodland adapting to the environment, catching up on missed secret history lessons, and familiarizing themselves with the rules and routines of life in the woodland.

It's not until the second year that you can truly plan your advanced learning path, select the courses you want to learn, and identify the skills and abilities you need to develop.

However, in the tide of the times, individual choices are like grains of sand, difficult to control, and can only rise and fall with the tide, either catching up or falling behind.

(End of this chapter)