Ancient Wizards: A Little Progress Every Day

Dago's sharp gaze swept over them, and the two of them felt a howling, cold wind rush around them.

Upon seeing that it was Serena supporting old Marico, Dago finally let go of the deep blue aura in his eyes and walked towards them.

Dago asked old Marico with concern, "Are you injured? Is it serious?"

He noticed the bloodstains on old Marico's robe and his pale face.

Old Maric forced a smile and said, "I was ambushed by that heavily wounded black-robed wizard, but it's alright, I won't die."

Dago thought for a moment, then squatted down and carried old Marico on his back.

Old Marico hesitated for a moment, then finally climbed onto Dago's back and said with mixed feelings, "Thank you, Dago, I'm a burden."

Upon hearing this, Dago shook his head and comforted him, saying, "Go back and focus on recovering. Don't think too much about it."

He gestured for Serena to follow him, and together they went to the frozen black-robed wizard to loot the spoils.

These black-robed wizards were getting poorer and poorer, possessing only a few low-grade magic stones.

Old Marico's weight was no burden on Dago, and they soon returned to the open space of the treehouse outpost.

Dago looked toward the gate behind him and saw Serena clenching her teeth and leaning against the wooden gatepost, seemingly enduring some kind of pain.

He gently leaned old Marico on his back against a wooden stump in the open space, then ran back to look at Serena and pulled up the hem of her robe a little.

Beneath her long robe, her small, snow-white feet were visible, but her ankles were swollen like steamed buns.

His rough behavior instantly made Serena blush, and she lowered her head, not daring to look at Dago.

Dago frowned and said seriously, "Why didn't you say you were injured? Is it impressive to pretend to be strong?"

Serena bit her lip, remaining silent, much like a scolded child.

Dago crouched down and used his Ice Crystal Spell to condense a fist-sized block of ice, which he then applied to the area.

"I have healing powers, Lord Dago, you don't need to do this," Serena whispered.

After a short while, the swelling in her ankle subsided considerably, and Dago got up and helped Serena to the open space.

Dago discovered that Serena was surprisingly well-endowed.

Although Dargo is a gentleman, he can't help but have some physical contact.

Usually, it's all hidden by the loose, oversized apprentice robes, so you really can't tell at all.

After being helped up by Dago, Serena kept her face flushed and head down, as shy as a rabbit being manipulated.

All three sustained injuries of varying degrees in today's fierce battle in the forest...

Sitting around the campfire, Serena continued to cast healing spells on old Maric, whose injuries were the most severe.

Dargo's white hands were covered in several corrosive energies, which were constantly trying to erode and corrupt his flesh...

Fortunately, the ice element can block and consume the corrosive energy.

He activated his meditation technique, continuously releasing resonance to increase the power of the ice element in order to consume the remaining corrosive energy.

As time went by, the setting sun, like a red-hot copper plate, slowly sank into the western forest.

Dago's injuries had almost healed, and he took out frozen monster crocodile meat from the treehouse.

They skewered the monster meat with branches and roasted it by the campfire, and also prepared a wooden cane for Serena.

Serena had used up most of her mental energy to heal old Marico's injuries, but her own twisted ankle injury had not been healed much, and she was still somewhat unable to move around.

He handed the wooden cane to Serena, who was almost moved to tears.

Dargo didn't have time to pay attention to her thoughts and started his family's traditional cooking: grilling meat.

Although Dago's roasted meat wasn't as good as Old Marico's, the quality of the raw materials was undeniable. The fragrant monster meat made all three of them keep swallowing their saliva.

Before long, the three of them began to wolf down their food, especially old Maric, whose face became much rosier after eating the monster meat.

Just as the three of them were enjoying their meal, the sound of footsteps from an uninvited guest appeared at the gate of the treehouse.

Dago instantly became alert; the deep blue halo in his eyes was already shifting, and a blue ice ball was gathering. The cold wind stirred, causing the campfire to sway erratically.

He roared, "Who is it?"

The people outside the gate were also startled by his voice and hurriedly called out, "A wizard from the Aynark Wizarding Academy!"

Dargo, holding an ice puck in his white hand, walked out and saw a middle-aged wizard with tattered robes and a terrified expression. The academy badge was indeed printed with silk threads on his chest.

He dispelled the Ice Crystal spell and instead released a detection spell; if things went wrong, he would be met with a barrage of air bullets.

The middle-aged wizard from the academy breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that Dago was also in the academy's robes. He smiled kindly at Dago and said wearily, "I saw smoke coming from this outpost not far away and wanted to come and rest for a bit."

Dago nodded, remaining vigilant, and led the two men to an open area.

Serena and old Marico had climbed to the top of the stronghold and were looking at Dago with puzzled expressions.

"We're on the same side," Dago said to the two puzzled men.

Only then did they lower their guard and join Dago. The four of them then began a new round of grilling and questioning.

The middle-aged wizard devoured the roasted meat like a starving ghost reincarnated.

Dago stared at him and asked, "Where did you come from? Why are you in such a miserable state?"

The middle-aged wizard paused, holding the roasted meat, and muttered, recalling a horrifying scene, "It's all over. The frontline fortress has fallen, and a large number of black-robed wizards have rushed in and started a massacre."

"Everywhere there were collapsed and burning wooden houses, ground shattered by witchcraft, and alleyways filled with the charred or frozen corpses of wizards."

"I managed to escape and have been running towards the academy. I haven't eaten for three or four days. Those Darkblood Council demons will be here soon, and we're all going to die."

As he finished speaking, he trembled all over and burst into tears.

Dago looked at his weeping with a solemn expression, feeling something was amiss. The black-robed wizard wouldn't let a wizard who was about to starve to death keep running away.

He took out the purple mental potion he had seized last time, drank it all in one gulp, and combined it with meditation to quickly restore his mental strength.

If he wasn't mistaken, this was a sting operation, targeting these rats in the forest.

Just as he was thinking this, the wooden fence surrounding the stronghold was suddenly struck by a ball of dark green energy. The energy licked at the wood and burrowed in like a bone-deep infection.

The wooden fence collapsed as if it were rotting wood, and the flying sawdust was mixed with a pungent stench of decay.

This familiar smell is corrosive energy; Dago was injured because of it.

"Enemy attack! Retreat!" Dago roared.

Then, an air blast was fired in the direction of the collapse to buy time for the three injured people to evacuate.

A black-robed wizard stood silently on the outskirts of the stronghold, a ball of dark green energy the size of a basketball gathering in front of his spinal staff.

The dark green energy ball flew rapidly towards Dago, piercing through the air blast Dago had casually launched...

It created an air burst in the air, and the remaining half of its size continued to fly in.

Dago's protective ring had run out of energy and could no longer stop the dark green energy ball from advancing.

He raised his white arm, and the ice elements covering it quickly condensed into a ferocious giant icy claw, which reached out to grab the energy ball.

The dark green energy ball was firmly grasped in the palm of the giant icy claw. The ice patterns on the surface of the claw lit up instantly, locking the energy ball tightly in its palm.

The two energies collided violently, the energy sphere continuously corroding the ice armor, emitting a sizzling sound.

Dago increased his mental energy output to the Resonance Spell, and the ice patterns on his arm armor emitted a dazzling blue light.

He rotated his wrist, and the knuckles of his icy giant claw made a crisp "crackling" sound. His five fingers slowly tightened, and ice patterns pierced into the energy cluster with the movement.

The twisting and rolling shadow energy ball suddenly froze, followed by a crisp sound like shattering glass coming from inside—and spiderweb-like ice patterns appeared on its surface.

The ice patterns spread at an astonishing speed, freezing the entire energy cluster into a black ice crystal.

"Shatter." Dago uttered a single word, his Frost Armguard clenching tightly, and the black ice crystal shattered instantly.

At that moment, a soft "tsk" sound came from the black-robed wizard's mouth.

He was an ugly, short-haired man with pale, bloodless skin covered in dark red tattoos.

He looked at Dago with a very surprised expression, and laughed as if he were a corpse that had been dead for a long time.

He said in a hoarse voice, "What an excellent academy wizard, he should be a very good blood sacrifice."