Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 67 - 64: Magic Power Lock

Lyle, the Giant Dragon, Alianna, and the gentleman stood in the clearing under the moonlight, surrounded by many shadows who, like them, waited in silence.

Tonight was the night to ascend to the City of Wandering.

Due to the anticipated unexpected, they had waited for quite some time.

"Mr. Faceless, our current target is within a twenty-mile radius to the east of Kakui Mountain, please establish the portal."

"Alright, twenty miles east of Kakui Mountain..."

"Wait a second, Faceless, the target has moved, now it’s thirty meters under the Gundling ruins."

"Alright, thirty meters underground..."

"Adjust! The target has moved to the Cuenca Sidewall!"

"..."

Faceless looked at his colleague who was checking the coordinates as the pale mask swept behind his head.

The assisting landmark book’s row of target text was flickering.

Faceless stood up.

"The Andrei Academy’s Teleportation Department is recruiting new Teleportation Mages, offering attractive employee benefits, negotiable salary, Magic Research Society members preferred, hard-working and warm-hearted individuals are prioritized!"

"Mr. Faceless, what are you blabbering about? There are no vacancies in our department."

"There is now, I’m resigning."

"..."

"Creating three sets of coordinates in less than a minute, those Mystics from the City of Wandering are messing with me. If you think you can do it, be my guest. I quit!"

It seemed there was serious trouble.

Just as Lyle thought that tonight’s journey might be cancelled,

"Mr. Faceless." A scholar with a dark blue ancient mask stepped forward, wearing a robe edged with gold threads, with fiery jagged hems at the waist, followed closely by Miss Wenli.

"Teacher!" Faceless slightly bowed to the scholar.

"What’s the problem?"

"Tonight, the City of Wandering is exceptionally active with leaps, it might not be suitable for a visit."

"Do you still remember what I taught you?" The scholar approached the engraved array, "Establishing a portal is a two-way process. It’s not about exerting force, but finding the connection," pale blue Magic Power burst from the scholar’s fingertips, penetrating the symbols of the array, "Since it’s difficult to capture the portal on that side, why not let them capture us from that side?"

Lights illuminated the symbols on the array, a human-height ellipsoid portal unfolded in the air, like a floating full-body mirror. On the other side of the portal, a man in a purple robe lay sprawled on the ground.

"You see, it’s done just like that."

Faceless looked at the man on the other side, whose mouth was wide open and his unkempt beard dragged on the ground.

"This is the Andrei Academy, hello, Mystic, the portal is ready; could you please step back a bit to give us space to stand."

Under the watchful eyes of many, the man hurriedly stood up, patted down his clothes, and stepped aside.

The members of Andrei began to line up and pass through the portal, one by one.

"Teacher, you always casually achieve what we can’t."

"Is that so?"

"Capturing moving coordinates, forcibly establishing contact with our own array, it’s like a person who can’t swim slicing through the ocean to walk on the exposed ground. I’m used to it, but it still feels... odd."

"Faceless, what level has your Magic Power reached?"

"Four Locks, Teacher."

"That’s indeed a bit low."

"... Teacher, you should go ahead with your business."

"Alright, goodbye, and remember to study hard, Faceless." The scholar walked through the portal.

Lyle withdrew his gaze.

Is this a true reflection of a poor student?

"Mr. Gentleman, what are Four Locks?"

"That’s an old ranking system we used for assessing Magic Power. Before aura concealment became commonplace, we had a habit of binding Mana Quantity with magic locks to our bodies to prevent our frail flesh from being damaged by our own power. The Magic Research Society still uses this outdated method. It indicates Mana Quantity; the more locks, the greater the quantity. By the way, I have Three Locks."

"Four Locks." Alianna.

"Six Locks." Mr. Giant Dragon gazed at the portal, yet it wasn’t his turn.

"What about me?"

"Less than One Lock."

I am useless.

Mr. Giant Dragon glanced back at Lyle, "Don’t mind the scholar’s words, Plague Doctor. Since the incident of Revelation, the scholar’s standards have increased significantly. Don’t compare yourself to a genius. The scholar had reached Eight Locks ten years ago, and few of his students have surpassed him."

"The Magic Power lock rating is a bit outdated; it doesn’t reflect your abilities. The same Mana Quantity can yield vastly different results depending on the effort."

"Take Spirit Summoning Studies for example. I am at Six Locks, but I can create spirits at Seven Locks level."

"A more typical example is advanced Magic Research. You can never know their limits."

Lyle felt much more at ease, realizing he had the potential to punch above his weight class, provided he wasn’t reversed and severely beaten by someone else.

"What about Raymond?"

Mr. Gentleman fell silent, "I’ve only heard through the grapevine that Lord Raymond’s power, Ten Locks."

Ten Locks?

"What is the concept of Ten Locks?"

"Move mountains and seas, an earthly deity."

"That can’t be real, can it?"

"I’m not certain myself, but Raymond’s holy light projection is convincing enough to deceive. I can’t see any reason for him to fake it, the reports at the time were about ten golden chains."

"If he truly has Ten Locks, how has the literature club survived until now?"

"Lord Raymond must have pulled his punches when beating us up. Don’t worry about it. Whether he has Ten Locks or Eight, it doesn’t make much difference to us. Perhaps tonight, you’ll gain a clearer understanding of Raymond. Here, take this."

Mr. Gentleman handed over a ticket, which seemed like some sort of admission pass, black with white letters.

"Black Abyss Arena?"

"The largest arena in the City of Wandering, also a popular area for people from Andrei. Our club conflicts typically take place there, and occasionally, there are private feuds. You can even take a swing at some members of the Demon Race; the arena is a business run by the Black Abyss Demons."

"Are there really demons?"

"Yes, with horns on their heads and bat wings on their backs. There are many types of demons, but they generally look alike. You might have heard the Church’s propaganda; actually, demons are much easier to deal with. They are just a group of victims labeled as enemies. However, their innate bad habits of destruction and conflict are true. Still, the higher-ranking demons are rational enough to reason with."

"Mr. Gentleman, Mr. Plague Doctor, it’s our turn."

"Alright."