Ancient Wizards: A Little Progress Every Day

"Kill it!"

Bernal’s voice came from beside Dago.

Dago turned his head and saw Bernal, who had recovered from his shock and disorientation. Bernal's expression was indifferent, showing a coldness and cruelty that Dago had never seen before.

"Kill it and take its heart essence, then purify it with the Blood Tree and use it on yourself. Even its corpse is a rare treasure."

Bernal said coldly, "I know you're reluctant, but this ancient snake species has boundless potential. If you can tame it as a magic pet, it will become a great help to you in the future."

"But it refuses to acknowledge you as its master and even regards you as an enemy. At its rate of growth, you will eventually be unable to suppress it, and then it will cause endless trouble."

"An untamed beast, no matter how fierce, is only fit to be used as leather. This is an ironclad rule passed down in the wizarding world. Dago, kill it. This is the best choice for you."

As Dago listened to Bernal's advice, his eyes flickered as he looked at the great ice serpent that still refused to lower its head even slightly.

at last.

The light that had been flickering in Dago's eyes calmed down, and he seemed to have made a decision.

He began chanting another incantation and quickly drew another type of rune pattern with his hands.

Bernal initially thought he was unwilling to give up and wanted to try again, but the more he listened, the more something seemed off.

When he finally realized what Ronan had done, his expression changed drastically, and he roared, "You actually want to sign this contract with it! Do you know what that means?"

"Buzz!"

As Dago uttered the last syllable, the last stroke of his pen fell to the ground.

A rune, far more complex and mysterious than before, resembling a distorted scale, appeared in his palm.

At this moment, Dago's eyes shone with an unprecedented brilliance. He looked at the rune in his hand, a slight smile playing on his lips, and said, "I'm not crazy, Bernal. Only a contract like this can it accept. I want it to willingly offer its loyalty and become my future ally."

"call--"

A sudden gust of wind whipped up Dago's waist-length hair. He looked up at the sky above, his whole being seemingly radiating unparalleled light.

"Don't you think this kind of life is more interesting? The unknown, the challenges, and the conquest of every seemingly unconquerable thing!"

"Bernard, this is the real me!"

Dago turned to look at Bernal, who stared blankly, as if he were seeing him for the first time in his life.

Soon, Bernal's expression calmed down, he took a small step back, and said nothing more.

Dago closed his eyes, seemingly deep in thought, making a final decision, or perhaps enjoying the tranquility of the moment.

Finally, he opened his eyes and, without hesitation, quickly pressed the rune he had drawn in his hand onto the brow of the giant ice serpent in front of him.

He was speaking in a low voice at the same time.

"I'm giving you a chance, a chance that, given time, you might take revenge on me for all the pain, resentment, and humiliation you've suffered today. Do you dare accept this? This is a special soul contract from Dago!"

The pure black eyes and the scarlet snake eyes met at this moment. Under the sky, the gazes of the human and the snake collided and intertwined silently.

"hiss--"

The runes disappeared into the snake scales, and the contract was formed.

A peculiar connection emerged between the two. Seeing that the great ice serpent had truly accepted his contract, Dago slowly revealed a smile.

He stood with his arms outstretched, alone under the clear sky, as if he were the only person left in the world.

This special soul contract is also a type of master-servant contract, but unlike ordinary master-servant soul contracts, the master and servant positions can be reversed in this agreement.

The strong rule, the weak follow!

Once one side challenges the other and wins, the roles of master and servant immediately reverse!

This is a high-stakes gamble that puts everything on the line!

With his eyes closed, Dago slowly emerged from the state of "despair and darkness".

He felt that at this very moment, he was undergoing a transformation and rebirth at the level of his soul!

A special soul contract was formed, though it carried unprecedented risks.

But Dago's goal was successfully achieved. Relying on his status as "master," the originally unruly ice serpent became exceptionally submissive.

I wonder if, in addition to the binding force of the special contract, it was also related to the fact that he had just been brutally beaten by Dago and was almost half-dead.

At this moment, many of the crystalline scales on the Great Ice Serpent's body were broken, and some bright red blood with a hint of blue seeped out from the wounds. However, as a second-ring magical beast, the potential of its ancient bloodline began to emerge.

Vast energy particles from the sky converged upon it, and the injuries on the Ice Crystal Serpent were rapidly healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"You're too reckless!"

Bernal stepped forward and whispered something to Dago, while his hands continued to collect the blood of the large ice snakes scattered around.

Not a single detail is overlooked; the details are extremely meticulous.

"No matter how outstanding your talent is, how dare you compete with this ancient bloodline? It is only in its youth stage now. As the bloodline gradually awakens, its strength will only grow faster and faster in the future."

Dago remained calm and said, "Don't forget, we have the Blood Tree. In a contest of bloodlines, I can always have the upper hand."

"Let's see if we can succeed first."

Bernal shook his head, then muttered to himself, "Fortunately, this contract isn't entirely without a way to break it. Dago, you know what I mean."

Bernal glanced at the large ice serpent beside him, his words carrying a hint of deeper meaning.

Dago's eyes flickered; he naturally understood what Bernal meant by "solution."

It's simply a matter of "breaking the contract" in advance—eliminating the Great Ice Serpent before it's perceived as being stronger than oneself, thus eliminating the risk of a master-servant switch.

It appears to be a fair bet, but in reality, the contract still favors the "master" to some extent.

Although Dago knew the so-called "solution," he didn't want to actually do it one day.

Just as he told Bernal, the road ahead is too lonely. There must be some challenging things and seemingly impossible goals to keep people passionate and motivated.

"That's fine."

Bernal collected all the blood scattered from the Great Ice Serpent and bound it together with his mental power; it was enough to fill an entire oak barrel.

"I'll go prepare it. You take the essence blood from its body, the one with the most concentrated bloodline power."

Bernal gave a brief instruction and hurriedly flew towards the valley.

Dago's gaze fell on the Ice Crystal Serpent, which was still silently healing its wounds.

After being thoroughly beaten by Dago and signing a "betting" contract with him, the snake seemed to have grown considerably all at once.

At this moment, it lay quietly coiled to the side, its scarlet, diamond-like snake eyes becoming deep and profound, as if it had learned to be patient and was beginning to develop a shrewd mind.

The special soul contract differs from the ordinary master-servant soul contract in that it largely maintains the relative independence of the "servant".

In a typical master-servant contract, the servant has no secrets from the master. However, Dago cannot fully perceive the Great Ice Serpent's inner thoughts; he can only vaguely detect some of its emotional fluctuations.

"You're secretly dreaming of eating me one day, aren't you!"

As Dago spoke to himself, he sensed turmoil stirring within the great ice serpent. It hissed softly, and a chilling aura emanated from its crimson eyes.

This chilling aura far exceeded what it had shown towards Dago before; serpentine monsters are typically cold-blooded by nature.

Dago reached out and gently extended his hand toward the head of the great ice serpent, as if to stroke its scales.

The latter recoiled as if electrocuted, showing obvious resistance. It was clear that it was not yet accustomed to such intimate interaction with a "human," especially one it resented and constantly sought to rebel against and surpass.

Dago calmly placed his hand on the scale between the serpent's eyebrows, and sharp ice crystal threads shot out from his five fingers, passing through the gaps between the scales and quickly burrowing into the flesh beneath the unicorn on its head.

The giant ice serpent winced in pain, its eyes flashing with ferocity and cruelty. It opened its massive maw, ready to bite down hard on Dago.

Dago remained unmoved, simply staring at it coldly.

"You should start learning how to be a proper summoned creature."

Drops of blood, tinged with crimson amidst icy blue, flowed rapidly from beneath the flesh of the giant ice serpent along the icy threads.

Bernal asked Dago to take his heart's blood, but Avery had told Dago that the most valuable essence of the Great Ice Serpent, which had awakened the bloodline of the ancient Winter Dragon, was actually in the blood sac under the single horn on its head.

That's where the bloodline power is most concentrated.

With its bloodline extracted, the massive ice serpent writhed and thrashed wildly, attempting to bite Dago countless times, but was firmly restrained by the power of the soul contract.

Dargo stopped extracting blood after obtaining about a fistful's worth.

He released his hand from the giant ice serpent's head, and the ice crystals retracted back under his robes. The giant ice serpent in front of him also quickly weakened, looking even worse than before.