Above the mage

Chapter 19 The Power of Spells

"The Three Principles of a Dharma Master?" Upon hearing this unfamiliar term, Gao De's heart stirred, and he secretly memorized the principle.

“It was Ilan who said it. He said that Master Seda told him,” Amy explained. “But he only mentioned this one thing; he didn’t mention the other two.”

Why is Ilan telling you all this?

"Furthermore, since 'never let others know your spells' is one of the three great principles of mages, how could Master Seda let you know his spells?"

Gao De frowned slightly and asked the question without leaving a trace.

Upon hearing Gao De's question, Amy understood what he meant and quickly explained, "Ilan said that in the restaurant before, when he was showing off his status as a true apprentice of Master Seda."

You weren't in the restaurant then, so you didn't hear it.

"That's true. Master Seda never told us about the Three Principles of a Mage. If Ilan hadn't mentioned it, how would we have known about it?"

"As for the magic of Master Seda, do you remember? Half a year ago, when Master Seda asked Neo to test the medicine, Neo was scared and wanted to run away."

He was running towards the backyard, and I happened to be there. I saw with my own eyes that the sorcerer Seda simply reached out and touched Neo, and Neo collapsed to the ground.

"If that spell could work without physical contact, why would Master Seda have gone to all that trouble?" Amy pouted, quite certain.

"I see." Gao De said thoughtfully.

What Amy said made perfect sense, and he believed her in his heart.

At the same time, I thought of the first day I came into this world, when I also experienced the magic of the sorcerer Seda.

The hand that caused him immense pain still haunts Gao De to this day.

"So it seems that Mage Seda has at least two spells that require physical contact to take effect."

Therefore, if it really comes down to the last step and we have to face him, the first thing is to avoid physical contact with him as much as possible.” Gao De kept this in mind, his thoughts beginning to wander.

"Besides avoiding it, is it possible to take advantage of this?"

"I know, go to sleep early, we have to work tomorrow." Gao De said softly as he thought to himself.

Amy didn't get the response she expected from Gaode. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but didn't know what to say, so she could only remain silent.

Soon after, the sound of Gao De's steady breathing could be heard in the room as he fell asleep.

The following afternoon.

After completing the preparation of the basic spider venom potion early on, Gao De left the workshop and headed to the commercial district of Hogan City for the third time.

He didn't notice that three pairs of eyes lit up simultaneously in the shadows of the bushes directly opposite the entrance to the herb garden.

The eyes belonged to three lean yet strong men.

Everyone was unkempt; their messy beards were stained with wine, their hair was greasy and tangled, and their clothes were covered in oil stains that couldn't be washed off.

These are the physical characteristics of people from the lower classes.

The three men all had cunning and belligerent eyes, clearly indicating they were not good people.

After watching Gao De walk away, the three of them began to whisper among themselves.

"Boss, is this him?" the darkest-skinned man asked.

"It's him. I've inquired about him. The old mage at the Seda Herb Garden rarely leaves his house. Whether it's selling potions or buying raw materials, he has his apprentices do it for him."

The only difference is that previously, this was handled by an older apprentice, but recently this young man took over.

The man called the boss spoke, his voice somewhat shrill, which didn't match the fierce aura in his eyes; instead, it sounded a bit like a rooster.

"Good thing, this kid doesn't look very old, he'll be easier to deal with."

"But he's a mage apprentice; he knows magic." The shortest of the three hesitated. "Are we really going to make a move?"

"We should indeed be wary of the old master, but what's there to worry about with such a small child?"

"A mage apprentice of this age won't have much combat power; at most, they'll have mastered one or two magic tricks."

"And it's most likely just a magic trick like 'Hand of the Mage,' which has no lethal effect. The three of us have been working in the mines for so many years, and we're all strong enough to take down a little brat like this, right?"

Among zero-level spells, Hand of the Wizard is arguably the most well-known and representative trick, and it is basically the first spell that every wizard apprentice must learn and master.

Therefore, even though many people are not magicians, they know about this spell.

"Third brother, you're still too timid," the second brother echoed the eldest.

"This kid didn't bring any packages on this trip, so he's not going to sell potions, but to buy raw materials for that old mage," the man called the boss said again.

"I also asked him. It seems that the old mage has been researching a high-level magic potion in recent years. The raw materials required are extremely precious and expensive, so this kid must be carrying a lot of money."

"We were already planning to leave Hogan City for Bremen City to make a living elsewhere. After this job, we'll just leave. Even if that old mage is incredibly powerful, he definitely won't be able to find us to settle accounts with."

The other two couldn't help but nod in agreement, agreeing that what he said made sense.

"When will we make our move?" the third brother asked again.

"We'll make our move once we get to the slums. It's chaotic there, and it'll be difficult to track us down. This will buy us more time, enough for us to leave Hogan City, and ensure nothing goes wrong."

"good!"

To reach the commercial district of Hogan City, the dark and filthy section of the slums remains the only way through.

However, compared to the previous two times, Gao De, who has mastered three new level 0 spells, is undoubtedly more confident this time and no longer needs to be cautious and timid.

Besides, even if the slums are a mixed bag with many thieves and scoundrels, under normal circumstances, a plainly dressed commoner like him, in broad daylight, would not encounter so many accidents.

But Gaode forgot one principle: an accident is called an accident precisely because it is unexpected.

Just like now, I walked to the corner of an alley leading to the street. Because it was an alley, the visibility was a bit dim, and I couldn't see any shadows.

It was under these circumstances that he felt a slight chill on the back of his head and heard a sharp gust of wind in his ear.

Sneak attack!

And it was aimed at his head.

Gao De reacted immediately, but it was too late. In his haste, he instinctively bent his body to lower the point of impact and avoid the head, which was a vital area.

Gao De's body reacted instinctively, preventing his head from being blown apart, but he was struck in the back. The powerful force made Gao De groan and stagger.

Feeling the burning pain in his back, Gao De made the right move, rolling over with the force to avoid the second attack that followed.

He quickly got up and saw the assailant who had attacked him.

Three rather burly men, each holding a wooden stick, were staring at him menacingly—he might be willing to pull off a heist, but the three men had no intention of killing anyone.

Although they were ruthless, they were not the most vicious and evil people.

Besides, he was only planning to rob someone, and he didn't have any deep-seated hatred for Gaode. Under normal circumstances, why would he have the intention to kill someone?

They would knock someone unconscious with a blunt object, then plunder all their money and flee.

"Luckily it's just a wooden stick," Gao De thought to himself with relief.

If the attacker had a weapon, he would be in grave danger by now.

"Who are you? Why are you attacking me!" Gao De shouted.

"Kid, you're quick on your feet. Hand over your money and we'll let you go!" the leader threatened, staring at Gao De.

"So it was a robbery." Gao De realized then that he had hardly had any contact with the outside world since he came into this world, so how could he have offended anyone?

However, Gaode was not prepared to spend money to avoid disaster.

Moreover, he only had a few dozen silver coins on him, which certainly wouldn't satisfy the three villains in front of him.

Thinking this, Gao De had already raised his hand.

A beam of light flashing with a cold blue glow burst forth from his fingertips.

The beam of light was as fast as lightning, flying straight toward the leading man, leaving a shimmering trail behind it.

The rays appeared very suddenly and at a very fast speed.

Furthermore, Gao De's roll didn't create much distance between him and the three people, making the attack so sudden that no one could react in time.

Gao De asked the three people about their identities, but he never expected them to answer the question.

The reason he spoke up was simply to slightly distract the three people and buy himself time to cast his spell.

The ray struck the leader directly, and with a soft cracking sound, a thin layer of ice instantly formed on his skin.

He felt a chill that penetrated to his very bones, along with intense pain; his expression was contorted with agony from the cold.

Freezing rays!

(End of this chapter)