Above the mage

Chapter 271 Drawing the Sword (Part 1)

In the Phoenix Center stands a building constructed of white marble.

Compared to other gray stone buildings, this building is unique in both color and style, and is one of a kind.

That was Sunefa's residence.

Having just been attacked, but having escaped unharmed, Gaud followed Grant and Catherine into the White Stone Building.

Sunafa had been waiting there for a long time.

At home, she no longer wore her battle armor, but changed into a long robe woven from deep purple ice silk.

The robe was the deep color of the night sky, yet it shimmered with a faint blue light, perfectly complementing her long silver hair.

The upper body is designed with a close-fitting cut, which not only outlines Sunafa's slender and elegant figure, but also does not restrict her freedom of movement.

The robe was also embroidered with intricate gold patterns, which were not only beautiful but also likely had some special meaning.

The cuffs and collar are inlaid with silver lace, giving it an overall luxurious look rarely seen in the North.

A leather belt cinched the waist of the robe, while the lower half was a white long skirt.

The hem of the skirt is also decorated with gold thread embroidery, which further enhances Sunafa's noble temperament.

"Greetings, Mother of War!" The three bowed to Sunafa as a sign of respect.

Although Sunafa was the youngest of the four present, apart from Gaode, she was the highest in both status and strength and deserved to be respected.

"Please have a seat," Sunafa said, sitting at the white stone table.

There are four chairs next to the white stone table, which are just enough to fill the table.

After a slight hesitation, the three of them sat down around the white stone table.

On the table are three cups of unnamed spring water emitting a chill, each with a leaf carved from ice crystals nestled in its center.

With a thought, Sunafa caused the three cups of spring water to move and stop in front of the three people.

That's just enough for one person.

Gao De lowered his eyelids and glanced at the leaves in the cup a few times. They looked somewhat familiar. After looking at them a few more times, he finally confirmed it.

"Are these leaves from the Ice Jade Phoenix Tree?"

Sunefa smiled slightly, "Yes."

"This is a good thing." Grant, seeing that God and Catherine didn't seem to realize the extraordinary nature of the spring water in front of them, immediately explained it to them.

"Aside from its status as the guardian tree of its own clan, the Ice Jade Wutong is essentially a fifth-tier magical plant."

"The spring water infused with the leaves of the Ice Jade Wutong tree is actually equivalent to a high-level magic potion. Drinking it can refresh the mind and heal some mental damage. However, the most noteworthy thing is that it can permanently enhance a mage's mental strength."

"It's a pity that this effect of enhancing mental strength only exists on the first use."

He smacked his lips and said regretfully, "I've already drunk it once, so now for me, drinking Ice Jade Wutong Water is just a way to refresh myself, which is a bit of a luxury."

"Enhance your mental strength?" Upon hearing this, Gao De's eyes lit up, and he instantly became alert.

Simply put, this effect is extremely rare and powerful.

From the first ring onwards, the improvement of a mage's spiritual power mainly comes from the soul sublimation brought about by the mage's level breakthrough.

Aside from that, at most, some special skills or side effects of cultivation methods can enhance one's mental strength by a little bit.

The channels for enhancing mental strength are so limited, yet its effects are extremely significant.

It relates to a mage's spellcasting skills and the stability of continuous spellcasting, the speed at which they learn spells, the rate at which they cultivate, and even their resistance to certain mental spells.

Most enchanting or illusion spells require a high level of mental strength to be saved.

Now, simply drinking a cup of spring water can boost one's mental strength.

This is like a windfall, how could Gaode not be excited?

Gao De gently picked up the cup and brought it to his lips. Before even taking a sip, a cool, refreshing scent filled his nostrils.

In an instant, he felt his spirits lift, as if he had just taken a nap and was now full of energy.

Without further hesitation, he drank it all in one gulp.

The next instant, a cool sensation flowed into his stomach along with the spring water and then into his brain.

Soon, Gao De felt as if his soul was being cleansed and nourished by this cool energy, and then he began to burst forth.

The feeling was like a plant that had been parched for a long time receiving rain, suddenly replenished with ample nutrients, and began to grow wildly.

His mental strength surged violently at that moment, like a volcanic eruption.

After a dozen or so breaths, the coolness completely dissipated, and his mind returned to calm, but his heart could not immediately find peace.

Gao De calmed his mind and used the "precise perception" ability he possessed after becoming a formal mage to sense the current total strength of his spiritual power.

After advancing one level, his mental strength reached "100".

Now, just from drinking a cup of spring water, his mental strength has increased to "132".

According to the standards for classifying first-ring mages, reaching 40 drops of liquid mana and 133 mental strength constitutes the mid-stage of the first ring.

Now, although Gao De's magical power is still 20 drops when he first entered the first ring, his mental strength is already infinitely close to the middle stage of the first ring.

On the other side, Catherine and Grant also finished tasting the Ice Jade Wutong Water.

Although Catherine has a high mage level, the increase in mental power from the Ice Jade Wutong Water is not significant compared to her total mental power.

But no one would not be happy about such an improvement that requires no effort to achieve.

Grant, on the other hand, carefully savored and appreciated the exquisite taste of the Ice Jade Wutong Water.

Aside from its own medicinal properties, the spring water infused with the leaves of the Ice Jade Wutong tree is refreshing and non-irritating, making it a superior beverage.

"I heard that you were ambushed by assassins on your way here," Sunefa said slowly.

The attack happened not far away. As the War Mother, she received the news immediately, but knowing that they had already resolved it themselves, she did not show up.

Grant nodded, his anger, which had just subsided, surged up again.

"War Mother, both the Jin Hui Mai affair and this attack are definitely related to Donald!"

"As the Great Elder of the Zhenbing Tribe, Donald shows no awareness of protecting the tribe, acting so lawlessly and even harming the tribe's interests for his own selfish desires. War Mother, we can no longer tolerate him! This time, we must teach him a lesson!"

At this point, Grant was so angry that his whole body trembled.

Golden Wheat is an important crop for the Zhenbing tribe, directly supplied to the tribe's Ice-blooded mages, and is also crucial for the advancement of the Guardian Tree.

If either of these two things goes wrong, it will be a major blow to the Zhenbing tribe.

It can be said that if it were found that Donald was behind these two incidents, even if he were the Grand Elder, he would have to step down from his position, and the reformist elders on his side would absolutely not be able to say a word against it.

Sunefa naturally understood Grant's anger.

She nodded slightly, reassuringly saying, "Elder Grant, please rest assured, Donald will not be able to escape this time."

After Grant calmed down a bit, Sunefa tapped the white stone table lightly with her index finger, turned her gaze to Catherine, and slowly said:

"After Elder Grant reported on the Frost Trolls yesterday, I went to investigate the activities of your three Snowfield Guardians during this period."

"Archbishop Rune has been at headquarters and hasn't gone out. Chief Quentin recently went to Viking Wolf Harbor at the invitation of the Vikings. Only your Inquisitor Ryan is nowhere to be found."

"But looking at it this way, only Inquisitor Ryan has the time and the ability to kill the Frost Trolls that are lurking in the Snowfarer Clan's camp."

"The human bones found in the Frost Troll territory were brought back by the people Elder Grant sent to investigate. I examined them, and although the magical power on them has almost dissipated, it is indeed still there."

"It must have been left by a skeleton resurrected through the forbidden necromancy spell [Manipulation of the Dead]."

After Sunefa finished speaking, Catherine fell silent.

With so much information before us, if we can't say with 100% certainty that Judge Ryan is the mastermind behind everything, we're at least 80-90% certain.

But even with the facts right in front of her, she still found it hard to accept.

Among the Snowfield Guardians, Judge Ryan is one of the three with the greatest power.

As an ancient sect whose doctrine is to protect the snowfield, its leader actually practices forbidden necromancy and commits massacres on the snowfield.

This is a very absurd and ironic thing.

It even made Catherine feel somewhat ashamed.

"These are all indirect pieces of evidence, not enough to directly accuse Inquisitor Ryan. He can always find an excuse to exonerate himself." After a moment of silence, Catherine finally spoke up.

What she said is true.

Because all the conclusions are inferred from these facts, there is still a lack of substantial evidence.

"That's not difficult to solve. We just need to apprehend Donald and interrogate him to get him to reveal the mastermind behind it all," Grant said, standing up again.

"War Mother, that hunter squad that was attacked and disappeared, and whose bodies were later found in Phoenix, must also be related to Donald."

His tone was unequivocal: "He may not have killed the person, but he definitely brought the body into Phoenix."

"These are seven corpses. How could they have been smuggled into Phoenix so quietly without Donald's involvement?"

After Donald was identified, many previously incomprehensible points were explained in a reasonable way.

A thoughtful look flashed across Sunafa's eyes.

"As the Great Elder of the Zhenbing Tribe, not only did he not avenge the murderers who killed our tribesmen, but he also colluded with them. This is simply a betrayal of the entire tribe!" Grant clenched his fists, like an angry young man.

Sunefa was silent for a moment, then spoke, "Elder Grant, what you say makes a lot of sense, but what we need is solid evidence to rightfully take down Donald."

Gao De, who had been listening in silently, suddenly looked up and asked, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead," Sunefa nodded.

Gao De asked a question unrelated to the current topic, "How does the Grand Elder's strength compare to yours, War Mother?"

"He is no match for me," Sunefa stated in an extremely calm tone.

It contains no qualifiers such as "should" or "under normal circumstances," and is simply an absolute affirmative statement.

"If that's the case, why bother dealing with Donald like this? Putting those things aside, it's true that he wanted to seize the throne, and he deserves to be punished. Why did you let him continue to be the Grand Elder, Mother?" Gao De asked, full of confusion.

Whether in historical records or in fictional films and novels, those who fail to seize power never have a good ending.

"Donald has served as the Grand Elder for over a century, and his influence in the Zhenbing tribe is deeply entrenched, with a large following."

"Moreover, he is the strongest person in the tribe besides the War Mother. It is not easy for us Northerners to survive on the snowfield. We must cherish every bit of strength in the tribe."

"If we take action against Donald, the Zhenbing tribe will suffer a severe blow, and it may even exacerbate the conflicts among the elders, leaving behind hidden dangers."

"The War Mother did not want to see this, so she could only restrain herself."

"To take action against Donald, there must be a reason that is reasonable enough that even the reformist elders cannot find any fault with."

Grant shrugged and said helplessly, "Only in this way can we avoid causing major turmoil within the tribe."

"But in fact, losing a fourth-ring Iceborn mage is also a serious loss for the Zhenbing tribe."

Although he was very dissatisfied with Donald, Grant still acknowledged Donald's importance to some extent:

"Moreover, Elder Donald is very experienced. He is the oldest and most experienced person in the tribe. He has accumulated a wealth of knowledge and wisdom and has provided guidance and imparted knowledge to many young Iceborn mages in the tribe, helping them to grow."

"That's why he has so many supporters."

This is equivalent to "having an elder in the family is like having a treasure." In addition to his status as the Grand Elder, Donald is also roughly equivalent to a "wise man" in the Zhenbing tribe.

Gaode nodded. In such a harsh environment, any decision does indeed require careful consideration.

With Donald having so many advantages, anyone wanting to take action against him would naturally have to consider many things, which explains why Sunefa was so hesitant to act against him.

He understands Sunefa's concerns, but that doesn't mean he supports Sunefa's decision.

In fact, if it were him, he would have killed Donald immediately, and killed anyone who was dissatisfied!

Even if the Zhenbing tribe suffers a major blow, they can simply endure it and start over. That would be far better than being schemed against like this, as if a huge bomb is planted next to them.

But this was Sunafa's business, and he had neither the right nor the right to offer too many opinions, so after asking, he nodded and said no more.

Just as Sunefa was about to say something more, a hunter guard strode in, whispered something in Sunefa's ear, and then quickly retreated.

After hearing the hunter guard's report, Sunefa's face turned cold, and she abruptly stood up.

This was the first time Sunafa had shown such a "clear" change in emotion.

"What happened?" Grant asked quickly.

"Donald is currently at the Ice Jade Phoenix Tree, trying to forcibly take Flora away," Sunefa said coldly, already enraged.

As soon as Sunafa finished speaking, Gaode stood up abruptly, his face instantly darkening.

He wasn't too angry when he was attacked before, but upon hearing this news, he couldn't suppress his anger any longer.

"Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to Flora," Sunefa reassured God. "I'll go first to stop Donald."

In the next instant, Sunafa's figure flashed and disappeared.

"Let's go too," Grant said, standing up.

Catherine took a picture of Gao De running, and the three of them quickly crossed the street.

Before long, they returned to the core spiritual land of Phoenix.

From afar, one could see that the wondrous Ice Jade Wutong tree was inexplicably radiating a dazzling spiritual light, as if it had come to life.

A crowd gathered in front of the ice-jade parasol tree, obscuring the details of what was happening inside.

"I am the magical pet of the High Mage, invited by your War Mother to oversee the construction. I am a guest. Your attempt to capture me is an act of rudeness, and your War Mother will certainly not forgive you!"

From within the crowd, atop the ice-jade parasol tree, came Flora's clear yet angry voice, which was also clear in thought and logical in its coherence.

She even knew how to find a powerful backer.

Lady Flora is indeed a woman of great wisdom.

(End of this chapter)