Above the mage

Chapter 779 King Meets King

"Each person should take a strand of their own hair and place it next to the corresponding skull." Van der Ley, with his back to the crowd, spoke in a calm and solemn voice.

All six remained solemn in this setting and did as instructed.

They each raised their hand, picked up a strand of hair, and solemnly placed it beside the skull.

Once all six were ready, Van der Ley's voice rang out again, his tone stern: "Place your palms firmly against your skull, maintain continuous contact, close your eyes and concentrate."

"After I begin the spell, no matter what unusual sensations arise in your body, you must not open your eyes, let go of your hands, or make any noise or move."

Gao De lowered his eyes as instructed, and gently placed his palm on the snow-white skull in front of him.

It felt lighter and cooler than he had imagined.

It was so light that he almost suspected the skull was hollow inside.

But it is complete, with all the bone plates fitting together perfectly, without any missing or damaged parts.

The surface of the bone is so smooth that it looks like it has been polished by fine sand for a long time. When you slide your fingertips down the frontal bone, you can feel a very fine, almost imperceptible ridge.

Those are natural traces left on the skull of a snowy owl as the various bone plates grow and fuse during its juvenile stage.

Snowy owl skulls are a very special type of ritual material.

Its scarcity even far exceeds that of most extraordinary ley line biological materials.

Snowy owls possess no extraordinary powers or elemental abilities; they are merely ordinary birds of the mortal realm.

They are docile, feed on grass seeds, and have no claws or teeth, nor any ability to protect themselves.

However, its meat is exceptionally delicious, making it a coveted prey for both birds of prey in the sky and ferocious beasts on the ground.

From the moment they hatch, wild snowy owls live under constant surveillance and hunting.

From the swooping eagles, to the lurking foxes in the forest, to the gazes of even larger nocturnal predators from the shadows, they were constantly struggling on the edge of life and death.

Each time, it needs to detect the gaze and react one second before being attacked.

Its skull underwent a directional shift in bone structure due to years of perceived threat.

Similar to the increased bone density that occurs after long-term human exercise, it is only more refined and specific.

Their bones contain a set of minute sensory pathways that are invisible to the naked eye, forming a natural, primordial warning rune structure.

This set of natural runes is the core foundation upon which the [Van der Ley's String of Vigilance] ritual can be permanently solidified; it is a natural template that no artificial alchemical creation can replicate.

The skulls of snowy owls raised in captivity and fed by humans do not possess this value.

Without the tempering of life and death, and without the refinement of constant vigilance, their skulls are of mediocre quality, lacking any sensory pathways or runic structures.

Wild snowy owls that are hunted or die suddenly from fright will have their delicate sensory patterns inside their skulls shattered by the extreme panic before they die, rendering the entire skeleton completely unusable.

Only the skulls of adult wild snowy owls that die of natural causes and pass away peacefully can fully preserve this set of innate warning bone markings.

These stringent conditions for formation inevitably lead to the scarcity of snowy owl skulls, which simply do not exist in the market.

Cedric is Van der Ley's grandson, but the old mage didn't pull any strings on this point.

It's not that it's impossible to make an exception for one's grandson; given Van der Ley's status and power, it wouldn't be difficult for him to make an exception and keep a skull for his grandson. It's just that there's no need for it.

The more precious the spellcasting material, the scarcer it is.

The scarcer something is, the more it can be earned through merit.

As the chief mage of the Royal Mage Order, he was under the watchful eyes of many, and he did not want to take the lead in doing something that went against the dynasty's traditions.

The hall fell silent for a moment as everyone remained in contact with the skull.

The next moment, Van der Ley's ceremonial chanting began slowly.

It was an ancient, rhythmic chant, where the duration of each syllable was precisely controlled.

His voice came through Gao De's ears, as if passing through a film of water, becoming deep and clear.

Each word ends with a very slight, almost imperceptible rise in pitch.

The sound landed on Gaode's eardrums, and surprisingly, it gave his scalp a strange tingling sensation.

At first, nothing happened.

Gaode could even hear his own steady breathing and the slight rustling of his teammates' clothes behind him.

After a short while, changes began to occur.

He could feel the skull in his palm starting to warm up.

It gradually transitions from icy cold to warm, and then the temperature continues to rise until it feels like holding a freshly boiled egg.

Gao De's fingers tightened involuntarily, but he immediately remembered Van der Ley's instructions and maintained his posture.

The warmth of the skull spread from the palm to the wrist and forearm.

Then he felt a slight tremor, as if something inside his skull was gently tapping against the inner wall of the bone.

The frequency is extremely fast and light, like a silver needle repeatedly scraping the surface of bone.

Immediately afterwards, the skull began to disintegrate.

It wasn't shattering, nor was it an explosion; rather, it started from Gaode's fingertips, like being rubbed away layer by layer by extremely fine sandpaper.

The surface of the bone turned into an extremely fine white powder.

The powder didn't fall or drift away in the wind; instead, it seemed to be drawn upwards along Gao De's wrist by some invisible force.

Gao De could feel the powder sticking to his skin, cool and dry.

Then it crawled down his forearm, upper arm, and shoulder, all the way to the back of his neck.

His heart beat a little faster, but he suppressed the urge to open his eyes.

The powder gradually covered the back of his neck and scalp completely.

An intensely cool sensation spreads downwards from the center of the back of the neck, between the third and fourth cervical vertebrae.

It's like a drop of ice water sliding down the inside of the spine, passing through the shoulder blades, thoracic vertebrae, lumbar vertebrae, and finally stopping at the coccyx.

Then, the drop of ice water began to spread to both sides.

Gao De felt as if his entire back was covered by an extremely thin, icy membrane.

The membrane extends outward from the spine to the edge of the scapula, and then to the side of the waist.

The moment the covering was applied, all the coldness disappeared, and everything returned to normal.

It was as if all the physical sensations just now were mental illusions, leaving no trace.

I took a breath and realized I was still holding a handful of powder.

Gao De let out a long breath, and a small amount of pure white powder that had not been absorbed by his body remained in his palm.

The dust, no longer drawn by magic, slowly settled and gently landed on the tray below, forming a fine, pale white mound.

The chanting of the rituals inside the hall quietly ceased, all the magical buzzing dissipated, and the magnificent hall returned to silence.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now."

Van der Ley's voice came through, his tone returning to its previous calm and steady manner, no longer in a chanting style.

Gao De opened his eyes.

Visually, there is no change.

He subconsciously turned his head and raised his hand, gently stroking the back of his neck.

It has a smooth and flat surface, without any texture, marks, or foreign matter residue.

But he could feel an extremely faint sensation, like a transparent veil covering his body.

Its presence is perceptible without requiring focused attention, but it won't interfere with any daily activities unless you consciously pay attention to it.

"The ritual is over," Mage Van der Ley rubbed his temples, a hint of weariness in his eyes. "You may leave now. There is a champion's reward you need to collect in the Hall of Honor."

"His Highness Du Wei will personally bestow upon the six of you the medals and orthodox titles of Honorary Mages of the Golden Flower," he said.

Upon hearing this, all six of them felt a slight stirring in their hearts.

This reward isn't that big, though.

Ultimately, it's just a medal or a title; it doesn't provide magical enhancements or resource support, and it can't directly elevate a mage's combat power.

But to be honest, it's not actually that small.

After all, the title preceding this honorary title is "Golden Bird Flower," which is universally recognized throughout the entire dynasty and must be acknowledged and registered by everyone.

It comes with many privileges, such as free access to the Dynasty's mage library and priority allocation of certain magical materials.

For a grassroots mage like Gaode, this is definitely extremely useful.

For the other five, although the privileges brought by the honorary titles were somewhat overlapping, this orthodox honor allowed them to further enhance and gain recognition in their families.

This meaning is even greater for them.

More importantly, this honor was personally conferred by Du Wei.

Your Highness Du Wei, the fact that Van der Ley addresses him in such a way speaks volumes about his extraordinary status.

Gao De has been in the Golden Flower Dynasty for several years. Although his status as a grassroots mage cannot be changed, he still has some basic knowledge.

He knew that Du Wei was actually the legitimate son of the current King List XII, the person who would rule the entire Plantagenet territory in the future, the so-called "Crown Prince".

Speaking of which, this Crown Prince happens to share the same name as the strange young man he met on the snowy mountain when he first entered the Northern Territory.

This made him subconsciously think of Du Wei on the snow mountain and the short time they spent "depending on each other" when he learned the prince's name.

I wonder where this friend, with whom I only had a brief encounter, is now, and how he is doing.

A faint sense of melancholy and emotion lingered in my heart.

However, Gao De quickly composed himself, bowed and took his leave with the other team members, and orderly withdrew from the ceremony hall and left the mage tower.

The ceremony for awarding honors to the monks was not held in the main hall of the royal palace, but rather in the exclusive hall at the residence of the Royal Monks.

This location was chosen in accordance with the rules and regulations of the dynasty.

The investiture ceremony held in the main hall of the royal palace was reserved exclusively for hereditary nobles, fiefdom lords, and high-ranking officials of the court, and was the highest investiture ceremony in the secular power system.

The title of "Golden Flower Honorary Mage" is a special merit award within the magic system.

This is a high-level honor endorsed by royalty and certified by the mage community.

Although legitimate and legal, it did not belong to the official ranks of nobility in the imperial court.

Therefore, the location at the Royal Mage Corps' residence was just right.

The ceremonial carriage carrying the entourage stopped in front of a detached building on the west side of the Royal Mage Corps' residence.

Above the building's lintel is engraved the coat of arms of the Plantagenet dynasty and a line of ancient text: "Bestowed by the Emperor for Merit".

When Gao De got out of the car with the others, he noticed that the guards in front of the gate were not wearing armor, but were wearing formal dark blue ceremonial uniforms.

The sword he wore at his waist was a ceremonial sword, not a weapon for actual combat.

The awarding ceremony was semi-formal, more solemn than a regular office setting, but more restrained than the grand ceremonies in the main hall of the royal palace.

Guided by the attending monks, the six people passed through the spacious front hall and entered the deep and well-organized main hall for awarding medals.

Gao De wasn't particularly nervous or anxious about meeting the "Crown Prince."

He had already met the Grand Duke of Crown, whose rank was second only to that of Liszt XII, and his wife.

Moreover, he was a guest at the Wang Mian Grand Duke's residence for a family banquet, where he had the opportunity to be in close proximity to the two men for an extended period of time.

Under these circumstances, meeting His Highness the Crown Prince doesn't seem like such a big deal.

After all, His Highness the Crown Prince's prestige is certainly no match for that of Grand Duke Wang Mian.

Not to mention that Grand Duke Wang Mian always treated him with a certain "scrutinizing" attitude.

Even knowing that this Crown Prince would become the most honored person in this dynasty many years later.

But that's many years from now, a distant future.

For now, meeting His Highness the Crown Prince is just something worth mentioning but not anything special for Gao De.

At least that's what he thinks at the moment.

The main hall for awarding medals is a regular rectangle, with a spacious interior and bright ceilings.

The overall layout is simple and elegant, without any superfluous or extravagant decorations.

The walls on both sides are adorned with portraits of many monks who had been awarded medals here.

Below each portrait is a plaque indicating the year the medal was awarded and the recipient's main achievements.

It records the rise of generations of mages in dynasties over thousands of years.

At the end of the hall was a platform about two steps above the ground, with a velvet carpet embroidered with broom patterns.

At this moment, the platform was still empty, with no one standing there.

The six people stood in a line, their posture upright, waiting quietly for His Highness the "Crown Prince".

After a moment of silence, the door to the private corridor on the side of the hall slowly opened, and a tall, slender figure steadily walked into the hall.

The person who arrived was Du Wei.

He was dressed in simple everyday clothes, without a crown or any complicated decorations, just a simple stand-up collar robe, yet he exuded an innate air of nobility.

Du Wei has a tall and straight posture, with neat and upright shoulders and a straight but not stiff back. Every move he makes exudes a restrained and dignified demeanor.

This is a physical instinct that people who live under the constant gaze of others develop.

Du Wei walked steadily and calmly through the passageway in the hall.

His expression was calm, showing no emotion whatsoever, and his gaze naturally and slowly swept over the six team members who were waiting.

However, the moment his gaze fell upon Gao De, a very slight hesitation appeared, and he almost lost his composure.

However, his expression remained unchanged, and he continued walking forward without flinching until he reached the high platform and stopped.

Just like a still, rushing river encountering a hidden reef, it pauses briefly for a moment, unnoticed by outsiders, but known only to itself to be churning with undercurrents.

This is the cultivation and refinement he has developed over many years.

Even so, beneath his perfectly composed calm, a slight unease and unusual emotion, extremely rare for him, arose.

Stun, emotion, surprise... and so on, along with a hint of joy that even he himself was unaware of.

The same "water flow stagnation" phenomenon also appeared in Gaode Maps.

Having lived in this world for so many years, Gao De has actually seen many different kinds of people.

But in terms of appearance alone, the most outstanding man he has ever seen has never changed.

That is, the strange young man who walked side by side with me on the snowy mountain.

Even Richard, whom they met later, could not surpass the young man in appearance.

In particular, the other person's eyes, which faintly shimmered with a golden luster, left a very deep impression on Gao De.

However, Gaode has only ever seen such pupils on this person before, and has never seen them again before or since; they are unique.

And now, he has finally seen GoldenEye again.

It remains unique.

Because it happened on the same person.

It has been more than three years since we last met.

When they met again, the other person was someone whose name Gaode had always heard of but whose identity they had never actually associated with.

Gao De lowered his eyes, suppressing all his emotions deep within his gaze.

Du Wei had already steadily stepped onto the platform and stood upright.

He looked straight ahead, scanning each member of the line from the far left, his gaze lingering on each face for a breath and a half.

Not too much, not too little, just enough for the person being watched to feel seen, but not so long as to make them uncomfortable.

When the gaze sweeps across Gaode's face, the duration remains as accurate as ever.

Without the slightest deviation or pause, it naturally moved to the next person.

No one noticed anything unusual in the less than two breaths that followed.

"Everyone." After scanning the area, Du Wei spoke, his voice slightly lower than Gao De remembered.

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