Extraordinary Voyage-Chapter 677 - 584: Resolving Hidden Dangers and Short-Term Planning

Ring, ring, ring...

The first basement level of the Waterfall Hill Wizard Tower.

Accompanied by the clear and pleasant sound of a bell in the void, the image of a massive emerald-green "Life Tree" in the ritual platform space slowly shrinks.

Finally, all the light coalesces into a gem-like tree-shaped rune, gently falling onto Angie, seated at the center of the ritual apparatus.

It completely covers the black "Sacrificial Mark" branded on the girl's slender shoulder. With a flash of brilliance, it quietly shed all mystical traits, transforming into a delicate ordinary tattoo.

"Whew—!"

But Angie felt her heart lighten instantly, letting out a soft breath, as the sense of impending doom that had shadowed her for many days swiftly faded away. Clearly, not everyone can stay unperturbed after finding out they've been marked by a Demigod.

Meanwhile, the white off-shoulder nightgown she was wearing altered on its own, reverting to her customary long dress style, completely covering the tattoo.

At this moment, Aiven and Olivia, who assisted in hosting the ritual, approached her with concern:

"Angie, how do you feel?"

It was the tenth day since they had narrowly escaped from the Netherworld. Shortly after returning to Georgia, they were astonished to discover that even though they had left the Netherworld's domain, the Sacrificial Mark of the "Jet Black Dragon" Nidhogg persisted.

During this time, Aiven had scarcely attended to other matters, focusing primarily on designing a ritual to isolate the Sacrificial Mark using the power of a Mysterious Source.

The power level of a Demigod is exceedingly high, even a small mark is not something ordinary Transcendents can underestimate.

"Teacher, the Sealing Technique you designed is very effective; I no longer feel like I'm being watched by some predator at any moment."

Angie displayed a brilliant smile, causing Aiven's heart to relax slightly.

He then assured her:

"There's no need to worry. That 'Jet Black Dragon' can't even cross the Nether River, let alone reach the Material World, and I will find a way to completely resolve this mark.

Moreover, the Witchcraft Garden is under construction, which has the effect of isolating the Spirit Realm. We can move there for research when it's finished."

Still, while comforting her, he knew that using the power of the Mysterious Source to shield the mark was only temporary; a permanent solution to the hidden danger was necessary.

The most straightforward alternative is to find a Tier 4 Archbishop-level True God Priest, who should be able to remove the mark Nidhogg left inadvertently.

"Alright, Teacher!"

After temporarily resolving one hidden danger, they didn't immediately leave the Wizard Tower but instead took the elevator within it to the laboratory on the fourth floor.

"Chief!"

"Teacher!"

Under the guidance of the old wizard Leon, who had gradually integrated into the school, Calvin, Jacob, Kael, along with two Outsider Apprentices Bess and Midorra, had prepared for another ritual.

Seeing Aiven's arrival, they greeted him in unison.

Though the school's members had gradually increased, Aiven commanded respect due to his status, prestige, and power.

Among the school members, the sole non-human existence was the most eye-catching.

Bess, dubbed the "Tool Bird," had been loyal to Aiven the longest but was now stationed in Hatrafa Port under her sister's command. Benefiting from Aiven's Tier 3 advancement, she finally completed her Transcendent transformation in three days.

She obtained a new Transcendent form, the "Human-faced Owl," turning into a snowy large owl almost human-tall, sporting a boy's face, akin to a mythological creature.

Yet, to the Vitalist School known for its peculiar aesthetic... er, such appearances seemed perfectly normal.

Simultaneously, Bess finally acquired her first Talent Magic besides her Wisdom: Mind Reading. Without precautions, even Tier 2 Transcendents on the physical side couldn't evade her eavesdropping.

The emergence of this formidable ability destined Bess to continue down the path of the "Tool Bird" indefinitely.

From Bess, one could observe the significant differences between the advancement of Outsider Apprentices and normal human apprentices.

Overall, the process is somewhat simpler; apart from the compulsory spiritual power index, other advancement criteria are less stringent than those for orthodox wizards.

This gap resembles the contrast between Aiven's integrated "Branded Swordsman" and Gel's "Life Tree Totem Warrior," where one is genuine while the other is a knock-off, naturally implying differences in future prospects.

Additionally, Bess and Midorra were originally mere mortals, becoming Transcendents through the far more reliable method of Outsider Wizard Apprentice rather than Artificial Demonization. Future strength would depend not on inherent traits like Kaka and Pipi's bloodline talent, but on accumulated knowledge.

Although they needed to specialize even more in a specific path compared to human apprentices.

Thus, only when Bess mastered the Transformation Technique on her own would she truly adopt human form.

Compared to Bess, Midorra, another servant demon, exhibited little change. Their foundation mattered—no matter how mortal, the latter's innate spiritual power index already far exceeded that of Official Wizards.

Hence, the benefits from Upper-Rank Wizard advancement for her were less pronounced.

When Aiven arrived with Olivia and Angie, their ritual was already ready.

Between two adjacent stone platforms: one lay empty while the other was covered with white cloth concealing a subtly breathing human body. The ground bore intricate technique patterns connecting the two.

Aiven gazed at the frail and skeletal old wizard:

"Master Leon, are you ready?"

Despite his frightening frailty, Leon retained remarkably good mental status for an Official Wizard, smiling:

"Who could refuse the chance to change into a young body and gain decades, if not centuries, of life? Especially when the new body perfectly fits the soul."

After they returned, Aiven gave Olivia a general account of his and Angie's magical experiences during this period, naturally including the story of Leon and the pharmacist's notes that served as his wizardry enlightenment.

Olivia was amazed and easily saved Leon's collapsing soul from spiritual contamination using [Spiritual Purification].

However, it wasn't only Leon's soul that was on the brink of collapse but also his old, dilapidated body.

Technically, an official wizard at 110 years old is far from reaching the end of life.

Wizards are the best-suited individuals for witchcraft power. Techniques that may require an over 80% success rate to be tried on mortals might be worth trying at 30% for wizards.

There are multiple methods to extend their life, such as blood fusion, mechanical body modifications, and replacing aging parts.

It's just that Leon, obsessed with new "Magic Potion" research in his youth, wasted too much time.

Despite his exceptional talent, he realized too late that he lacked the time and resources to advance as an official wizard.

Now, after joining the "Vitalist School," with strong resources and technological support, he decided it was better to replace his entire body directly, rather than just fixing parts!

This would allow the soul of this master of magic potions to embrace the "Vitalist School" without any concerns.

The ritual officially began.

Leon was already lying on the stone platform, and beside him, the white cloth on the other stone platform was lifted, revealing another "Leon," a robust middle-aged "Leon" with ruddy skin.

This was one of Aiven's achievements after advancing to Tier 3—[Cloning].

Theoretically, human pluripotent stem cells can replicate infinitely while maintaining their undifferentiated state; thus, in cultivation, it can be considered immortal.

Therefore, not only can a young body be cloned using stem cells, but a second, third body can be cloned... Even, to some extent, the body can achieve immortality.

The mortal world may find it difficult to solve consciousness issues, but for wizards, it's nothing.

It's somewhat similar to the "Mechanical Immortality School's" [Prosthetic Body], but this involves a full-body switch, including the brain, where the only limit to human lifespan thereafter is the strength of the spirit.

This soul transfer ritual is a technology researched by Leon himself, with the original [Dream Corridor] as its core framework. The principle is that the sea of collective unconsciousness is connected and can be used as a communication medium.

After diving in, instead of entering the Spirit Realm, he swims the sea to enter the perfectly matched new body. How could the blank soul in the new body be a match for an official wizard?

Hoo——

An invisible Spiritual Wind quietly rises, then... nothing changes.

Until ten minutes later.

Aiven first sensed something, meeting the gradually opening eyes of the middle-aged Leon, he started clapping gently.

"Congratulations on your rebirth, Master Leon." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"Tha..anks.. Chief, the feeling of being young is... wonderful!"

Leon slowly sat up, looking at his hands. Initially, his body felt a bit stiff, but he soon fully adapted to the new body.

...

With two pressing issues resolved, and confirming that the Cumberland Line was stable for the time being, Aiven had gone back to focusing on his wizardry research.

After all, the last "Spiritual Origin" overflow was less than ten days ago, and there was still time before the next overflow.

The gains during this period and the new abilities from becoming an Upper-Rank Wizard needed thorough digestion.

Though Talent Magic has great applicability, a Great Wizard cannot rely solely on magic-like techniques all the time. Or rather, at this level, a wizard personally engaging in close combat is only a last resort.

Among the Fourth Volume [Activated Dead], [Whole Body Activation Technique (Living Ship Spirit Technique)] and the Fifth Volume [Creator's Blood] mastered by a Tier 3 Grand Wizard, they all encompass an ocean of knowledge.

Except for some Steel Men's research on [Activated Dead], both the Fourth and Fifth Volumes are entirely elusive, but just one of these requires Aiven to spend much time comprehensively understanding.

[Strong Demonic Weapon], [Clay Puppet], [High-Level Transformation Technique], [Flesh Curse], [Golem Resurgence], [Super Giant Golem]...

Pushing witchcraft at this level to its limits, even transforming dead items to flesh and blood to become anything the wizard desires. Temporarily turn a branch into a steel sword, a wooden table into a steed, or a fishing boat into a whale, is a power worthy of being called miraculous.

No need for scientific principles, using the wondrous effects of witchcraft to create miracles forcefully, this was once the outstanding contribution of the "Big Banyan Tree."

The newly established [Genetic Theory] also requires a series of witchcraft to fill it in, making it a gigantic project.

Moreover,

with the ability to employ space powers after advancing to Upper-Rank Wizard, the expansion of internal space and subsequent upgrades of the Wizard Tower need to commence.

Even the ace weapon of the "Mechanical Immortality School," the [Mechanical Tower: Modo Sage], can be deconstructed and replicated anew, and after activation, it would surpass the original version.

Most importantly, the conceived "Legendary Battleship" has already stirred his anticipation.

So, after a period of accumulating knowledge, Aiven's strength will surely see a great advance.

But before that, for the subsequent construction of his foundational sanctuary, the "Witchcraft Garden," he still needs to make a trip.

To recover the starting point of the Life Tree School's rekindled fire—the super giant rock golem "Mountain Giant"!