Chapter 936
, Chapter 145: Flowers may bloom again, but youth never returns.
Chapter 936, Chapter 145: Flowers may bloom again, but youth never returns.
Orion put on his fur coat, and a group of Ranger guards followed him. These Rangers were now vastly different from the crude power system of a hundred years ago.
Rangers have a wide selection of spells to choose from because Locke himself is skilled in Peach Arch and Thorn Arrow magic, and needs them to develop a series of matching spell models for the Great Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow. Therefore, these rangers are adept at using bows and arrows and agility.
Orion donned military attire, slung a bow and arrows over his shoulder, and acquired his weapons.
He looked at the city-state lords under his command and said, "You all don't need to see me off. This is enough. Ahead is the Golden Tree. As long as you enter the dimensional passage behind the Golden Tree, you can enter the Emerald Dream."
"It is a natural paradise that is always in spring."
These city-state lords, all elite forest rangers, looked at him with complex expressions.
They admired and loved him, but they also felt that Orion was hindering the progress of the times and preventing their era from arriving. They were eager to try, but they all knew that they were no match for Orion.
At this moment, Orion's resolute act of entering the Emerald Dream alone should have made them feel happy, but their hearts were heavy.
They were witnessing a legend coming to an end.
Orion suddenly spoke up: “I’ve heard a saying: flowers may bloom again, but youth never returns. I built this city-state here when I was young, and it has become the holy land of our civilization. I know what you’re thinking; you want to make this the capital of a kingdom.”
Orion looked up, as if he could sense Locke's location, but it seemed like an illusion.
“You want to see a vast kingdom emerge, you want this era to end and the next to begin. But I tell you, don’t even think about it.”
"Don't even think about creating something that will squeeze and exploit the common people while I'm still alive."
Orion gripped his battle axe tightly.
"I know what you're thinking."
His sharp gaze swept over the crowd, and the forest rangers all stepped back.
Orion sneered.
"As long as I live, that day will never come."
"And now I am heading to the Emerald Dream. I will fight my final battle there. I will try to obtain the second-ring Power Leaf for my treant teacher. If I succeed in this battle, our Ranger system will produce a second-ring member. But if I fail, I will die there."
Upon hearing this, the eyes of a city-state lord lit up. He looked up at Orion and asked, "But Teacher Orion, since you became the first Ranger in this world, you have been the backbone of all of us Rangers. You even control this Golden Tree and have the right to contact the teacher at any time. After you die, who will take charge?"
Orion sneered again.
"I will not die."
“But I will not let my descendants inherit my position. There is no such thing as a hereditary position among Rangers. My position will be given to the best Ranger. Unfortunately, to your disappointment, although I am old, I don’t know why, but I feel that power is flowing continuously from my feet into my world.”
"Although flowers may bloom again, youth never returns."
Orion, bow and arrows in hand and slung over his shoulder, strode forward and entered the Emerald Dream.
“Teacher, I can feel your profound power surging towards me. Although I don’t know why, this is what gives me the determination to enter the Emerald Dream again.”
After he entered the Emerald Dream, the most outstanding city-state lords of the Three Cavern Worlds looked at each other in bewilderment.
They collectively reached a conclusion—
Orion left behind his dying wish that the strongest person would inherit his position.
Locke's figure disappeared into the city-state established by Orion. This city-state was built by Orion for himself, and now that Orion had left, there was no reason for Locke to remain in it any longer.
Locke looked at the city-state lords and could sense the nascent prosperity of summer. Orion, who had helped him create the Eternal Spring era in the Three Caverns World, should also transition from spring to summer with his departure.
Just then, Locke's long-dormant super intuition suddenly sent him a sense of life-or-death crisis.
Locke frowned in surprise.
“A complete Demonic Dragon bloodline is a bloodline with three rings, and now the Demonic Dragon bloodline is issuing me a warning. This warning is so urgent, as if I will die if I don’t break through.”
Locke used advanced meditation to introspect on the half-dragon remnant within his own bloodline, which was essentially a form of spiritual enlightenment.
The half-dragon, Ling Hong, seemed to have lost control. Upon seeing him, its attitude became extremely hostile, and it even opened its dragon mouth, attempting to bite him.
The dragon's gaze toward him was filled with disgust and hatred.
Locke looked at the top of the dragon's forehead in surprise and found that the heart-shaped curse on the dragon's forehead was still there. This meant that the afterimage of the dragon should not be controlled by the Tower of the Black Sun, but should be serving him.
But why is this afterimage of the demonic dragon so hostile to him, even wishing to kill him?
Why is that?
Locke quickly realized a possibility: the wizards of the Black Sun Tower were particularly close to him.
The bloodline of the Demon Dragon is deeply intertwined with the Tower of the Black Sun.
If a wizard from the Tower of the Black Sun gets particularly close, it's perfectly normal for the dragon bloodline to surge, and the associated [super intuition] ability to warn of danger.
I must break through to the Star Ring Wizard level as soon as possible, or I will have no chance of survival.
This is a superintuitive reaction.
Locke looked at the trees of the city-states, and immediately stretched out his palm to the golden tree. Instantly, countless leaves on the golden tree scattered into golden leaf shadows, which drifted in the wind and fell upon the city-state lords.
The lords of these city-states immediately reached out towards the golden leaves.
"This is... the Patriarch has manifested! This is wonderful! This is the Patriarch who passed down the Way of the Forest Hermit. The Patriarch has given us so much knowledge."
"So the question is, did our patriarch support us in establishing a kingdom or not?"
"It doesn't necessarily mean they're supportive. After Professor Orion, can't we just maintain the status quo?"
"How can maintaining the status quo lead to another surge in the number of Rangers? How can we bring the Leaf of Power to a new level? In the past, only Orion was the one driving the Leaf of Power, but now we can only rely on ourselves."
“Maintaining the status quo would allow the number of Rangers to surge again, and it would also allow the Leaf of Power to reach a new level. The Three Caverns World is vast, and currently only one-third of the region belongs to Rangers. Many more regions are simply city-states established by ordinary mortals. If we spread the Way of the Rangers to those regions, wouldn't we be able to accumulate enough talent?”
"To develop, we must establish a kingdom!"
"Establishing a kingdom may not necessarily be a good thing!"
……
In the Golden Crown Mountain region, the Dragon Wizard raised his hand, holding a gray bell. He shook the bell and chuckled.
"You wouldn't believe it, would you? Your bloodline might not necessarily be on your side."
He rang the bell three times.
Then, he looked up at the Golden Crown Mountain, which had a sun hanging behind it, with one large and three small Golden Crown Mountain.
"Honestly, I was forced to become a dark wizard to get here. Is that the Golden Crown Mountain? It's truly extraordinary."
A look of caution crossed the Dragon Wizard's face, because he felt his luck rise as he approached Mount Golden Crown; the so-called Dragon Nest Luck Enhancement Technique of Mount Golden Crown had actually worked on him.
His fate was protected by sacrificial magic.
Even though ritual magic has clearly reached the limits of traditional magic and exhausted its potential, why is there still magic that can enhance one's luck under the protection of ritual magic?
"Of all the ages, this one is the most difficult for the Tower of the Sun to grasp."
"Is there something that ritual magic can't cover?"
Behind the dragon wizard, a three-dimensional seven-pointed star appeared floating in the air, with various runes and patterns appearing within it.
"Where there is no ritual magic, there is no such thing as magic."
"The prophecy of the Tower of the Black Sun is the truth."
He spoke to the air and prophesied to himself: "My destiny will not increase unless I die immediately."
The next moment, a dark figure landed behind him, and his luck, which had increased because of Golden Crown Mountain, was directly cut off.
The dragon wizard had a half-smile on his face. He grabbed the ball of luck that he had severed, and the ball of luck instantly turned into a semi-transparent black figure in his hand. Then, as if he were sculpting a puppet, he sculpted a replica of himself.
Then, he placed his doll on the ground, and immediately a magical pressure identical to him appeared on the ground.
However, this puppet lacks consciousness.
"I'll use this wisp of luck to create a clone, so I can use it to kill that demonic dragon wizard without revealing my identity. Moreover, this clone shares the same origin as the barrier of Golden Crown Mountain, allowing me to enter Golden Crown Mountain at will. But is it incomplete? What's so difficult about that?"
"Is it necessary to use an immense magic of this era?"
The dragon wizard waved his hand and put the clone away.
He did not go to Golden Crown Mountain. There were too many barriers and hidden witch formations around Golden Crown Mountain. If he were to break through head-on, he would have difficulty succeeding unless he used all his methods.
But wars between wizards are essentially wars of information.
"I can sense that someone is paying attention to me. There are probably more than one expert here."
The dragon wizard of the Tower of the Black Sun let out a soft laugh.
"My style of doing things is upright and aboveboard. If you want to stop me, you're like a mantis trying to stop a chariot."
"The prophecy of the Tower of the Black Sun is the truth. This truth has never changed in thousands of years. Except in the hands of that person..."
He looked toward a medium-sized wizarding academy in the distance.
He planned to capture a few second-circle wizards, interrogate them for resources related to the Great Magic Spell Model, steal a World Stone, and then use it to create a Great Magic Spell on the spot. Since he was already doing what only dark wizards do, he might as well go all the way.
Damn this broken era, how can a high-ring wizard be unable to move an inch without money?
Then wouldn't his only option be to just rob it?
In this way, he could command this clone to enter Golden Crown Mountain and kill the little dragon.
The Dragon Wizard turned back for one last look at Mount Golden Crown.
'This force might form an alliance in the future, but it could also become a formidable enemy; they are far too fond of protecting dragonblood wizards.'
'In the past, we would never have let them grow up.'
……
In the Three Caverns World, Locke chanted a spell and followed Orion into the Emerald Dream.
In the Emerald Dream, a withered tree nightmare appeared before Orion. The nightmare seemed to have been a ringed beech tree in its previous life. It raised its withered branch arm, which transformed into a spear, and thrust it towards Orion.
"Hahaha... Damn old man, you're old, you're doomed."
The withered tree nightmare lunged at Orion, but the next moment, Orion raised his battle axe and cleaved him in two from top to bottom.
Another withered tree nightmare attacked Orion from behind, but he clenched his left fist and slammed it back, instantly smashing the crystal heart in the withered tree nightmare's chest to pieces.
Orion killed two Dead Tree Nightmares in succession.
His eyes emitted a light of magical power he had received from Locke.
As the two withered tree nightmares died, the Leaf of Power - Path of Nemesis hanging around Orion's neck flashed twice with emerald light. The bodies of the two withered tree nightmares shattered, followed by the spirits of a beech and a holly, which swirled around his body before dissipating.
Orion roared into the depths of the Emerald Dream.
"Stop joking around. Big Bush Corn Nightmare, I know you're nearby. No need to test me. Come on. I may be old, but I'm still the God of War."
Within the Emerald Dream, numerous withered tree nightmares exist—these were various kinds of magical tree plants in life, which transformed into withered tree nightmares after death. Each of them possesses a beating crystal heart in its chest, suggesting they likely perished during the magical plant crystallization technique. Their bodies are enveloped in billowing smoke and heavy particles of the Rathalos element.
Their bodies are either black or blue.
The beautiful, eternal spring-like emerald dream surrounding us was turned upside down in an instant, and everywhere was filled with the nightmare of withered trees.
From within these dark, barren trees, a nightmare of giant fodder corn emerged. It resembled a corn plant a hundred meters tall, with the corn's roots forming its feet and the corn silk forming a crown on its head. It was the nightmare that was transformed from the extremely rare second-ring magical plant, giant fodder corn, in its previous life.
Locke was somewhat shocked by the Rose Council's arrogance when he saw this.
Great fodder corn is an extremely rare second-ring magical plant of the Star Ring level, and it is naturally very precious to a normal wizard.
Even a Sun Ring Wizard wouldn't consider it a free lunch.
result……
They actually used such precious materials for research related to the crystallization of magical plants?
Locke hid behind Orion, a strange look in his eyes.
His intuition told him that something was amiss, because Great Fodder Corn was an extremely rare magical plant that wizards were currently unable to mass-produce.
Under normal circumstances, it is impossible to use it as a test subject for the magic plant crystallization technology, unless there is a special need.
But what kind of demand is that?
The nightmare of the giant fodder corn let out a mocking sound.
"Old friend, you've gotten so old?"
The next moment, Orion drew his bow and shot a flaming date arrow at the Great Foeweed Corn. The Great Foeweed Corn blocked it with its corn leaf tentacles, but its leaves immediately caught fire.
One of the power leaves on Orion's neck has evolved.
That was a first-circle spell model: Fire Date Arrow.
Orion felt Locke's magic flowing into his body, his thoughts colliding with Locke's, and then they sensed nature together.
"The teacher is sharing with me his knowledge of sensing nature."
Orion was invigorated.
"Thank you, teacher."
"At this moment, I am not fighting alone. Behind me is... the forest."
The large fodder corn cried out in agony.
Because his corn leaves were burned by the flames, the jujube arrow used by Orion was a jujube vine taken from a jujube-type magical plant with a ring. Therefore, the Fire Jujube Arrow is simply a minor spell under the Peach Arch Thorn Arrow spell model, and is one of its variations.
The next moment, Orion leaped out and shot an arrow forward. The arrow multiplied in mid-air, becoming two, then four, then eight, creating a rain of arrows in an instant.
The leaf of power he wore around his neck transformed into a model of the jujube arrow rain spell.
Dozens of withered trees fell with nightmare-like screams.
The nightmare roars of the giant fodder corn.
"A trivial skill!"
The Great Grass Corn Nightmare brandished its corn leaves, each leaf like a whip, dozens of them lashing out swiftly and fiercely at Orion, a star ring mark appearing behind it.
Orion's body was covered in countless wounds.
The nightmare of the giant fodder corn grinned maliciously.
The next moment, Orion waved the arrow in his hand, and the jujube branch formed an arc, instantly turning into a shield that temporarily blocked the attack of the Great Grass Corn Nightmare.
The nightmare of the giant fodder corn grinned maliciously.
"I will take my revenge on you humans!"
"Human, you are no match for me. Sensing the rage behind our crystallized demonic plants!"
"Humans, you won't allow us to exist? Then try and destroy me! I will destroy you and the world behind you. Then, I'll return to the wizarding world through that world and demand justice from the culprit!"
A star ring appeared beneath the Great Grass Corn Nightmare, a warning from the endless void to Orion.
He should get away from us quickly.
Orion simply fired an arrow at the Great Grass Corn Nightmare, an arrow imbued with the power of frost.
First-circle spell model - Frosty Arrow.
Orion said, “I don’t know what happened to you. But I sense that in this era established by the teacher, no power is suppressed, and no one’s existence is eliminated. I will purify you, Nightmare. I want you to return to nature, to return to our side.”
The Frosty Arrow landed on the Great Grass Corn Nightmare, freezing its leaves.
Orion fired his fourth arrow at the giant fodder corn nightmare, and a leaping lightning arrow flew toward the giant fodder corn nightmare.
"what……"
A large amount of heavy particle smoke of the Great Grass Corn Nightmare flew out from its body. For a moment, this Star Ring-level magical plant was about to return to its original state.
Its branches and leaves began to return to their original state, and the bluish-black color on its body began to disappear.
But the next moment, the heavy particles of arsenic retracted back into its body.
A wisp of its spirit lingered near Orion's ear. Orion gritted his teeth, as if he could hear the demonic plant crying out, pleading for its salvation.
Orion took a breath. He felt his strength gradually increasing, but for some reason, his body was becoming heavier and heavier.
His spirit seemed to merge with his teacher's magical power, transforming into an arrow that fell forward, but his body simply couldn't keep up.
Orion felt his legs gradually becoming heavy.
He used the first-circle spell model [Light as a Feather], and with a few light steps, he left his original spot. The next moment, the spot was torn apart by the corn leaves of the Great Grass Corn Nightmare, and the rocks exploded.
The giant fodder corn nightmare roared, "You're not so stupid as to think you can do anything, are you?"
"Don't even think about it. You bastard who appeared out of nowhere."
"I'm looking for a wizard, not you."
"Hehehe... Gotcha."
With its basic attack power, the Great Grass Corn Nightmare finally managed to grab Orion's left leg with its corn leaf tendrils. At the same time, Orion fired an arrow forward.
The giant fodder corn nightmare quickly jumped in place, dodging the arrow.
Where are you shooting?
"You missed."
The nightmare of the big fodder corn winked at him.
"You're getting old."
"Everyone gets old, and when people get old, they can't do anything anymore, Orion."
Orion's chest was suddenly pierced by the corn tassels of the Great Fodder Corn Nightmare.
Orion looked down at his chest.
"Yes, I'm getting old. My physical strength is failing me."
"But my arrows... will no longer miss."
"Teacher, can people ever be young again? What is the true relationship between humans and nature?"
The arrow that had originally landed behind the Giant Grass and Corn Nightmare suddenly turned back and struck the Giant Grass and Corn Nightmare, instantly creating a hole in the middle of its body.
The Great Grass Corn Nightmare screamed in agony as its entire body began to crumble under Orion's arrow, centered on its hole.
Orian collapsed to the ground, his life slipping away bit by bit.
Locke, who was standing not far away, frowned when he saw this scene, because it was Orion's own choice, and he originally did not want to interfere.
This is my own principle of least interference.
Locke stood with his hands behind his back, lost in thought. As things progressed, with Orion's death, the era of the Three Cavern Worlds would continue. By borrowing the principles of the Book of Gods, he could combine his magical power with the divine power of the Persepolis gods to create the Fruit of Summer Prosperity. Whether it was the Fruit of Spring or the Fruit of Summer, both were essentially products of combining the divine power path with his own various magical powers.
Following this line of thought should be the right approach.
I just don't know why I feel so uneasy.
Locke frowned.
He watched as Orion struggled to his feet and looked up at the sky. With a wave of his hand, the last leaf of power that Orion had evolved into fell into his hand.
That's the Path of Nemesis - Leaf of Power, almost ready to evolve into a second ring.
Locke looked at Orion and saw his old age and weakness, his failure, and his resentment.
'So, as long as Orion is still young and possesses power, can he deduce the second-level Power Leaf? Without following my original plan—to deduce the Summer's Prosperity—he can deduce the second-level Power Leaf.'
Locke frowned.
"No, this line is the absolute difference between the first and second ring roads. This small difference is an infinitely large difference."
"This is just my assumption. Everything should still go according to my original plan... But since it has already come to this point, it saves me a lot of trouble."
Locke appeared before Orion, and with a wave of his hand, the Great Glazed Winter Green Plum Blossom appeared. He enveloped Orion in ice, freezing his body and putting him into a deep sleep, thus halting his life process as much as possible.
"Really. I only wanted to see your final battle. I didn't expect to give it to you directly. The arrow-type spell models I synthesized with the Synthesis Cube, combined with your final power, actually evolved into some pretty good spell models."
“Orion, you have helped me push the Path of Nemesis to near the second level. Orion, watching you die without interfering with the natural process was originally my choice. But you are my student, my friend, and I can't just watch you die like this. So be it, I will use the Great Glazed Winter Green Plum to prolong your life. But will this be in vain?”
Locke frowned. Humans aren't plants or trees; how can they be without feelings?
Seeing Orian die in front of him like this, he was moved, so he still went against his principles and intervened.
Locke suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly.
"That's right. I'm a human being, not a plant or tree. I can't be heartless."
Locke turned to look at the large fodder corn nightmare that Orion had killed with his final nemesis's ability to lock onto enemies.
"Hmm? I see. The Great Grass Corn is indeed a rare magical plant among the second-ring magical plants that possesses the ability to regenerate. Wait, since the Rose Council's magical plant crystallization technology has already achieved the ability to keep crystallized magical plants alive, why use the Great Grass Corn, which is known for its ability to regenerate, for crystallization experiments?"
"But Yunze has already posted them... it's impossible that they're fake."
(End of this chapter)