Secret Plane

One week passed, and the day had come.

The heavy clouds were a patch of dark gray, and from time to time it drizzled, which made people feel like the shadow of death was looming over them on the horizon.

Acolytes from Abyssal Bone Forest were crammed into a giant field of wild grass. Each of them had a solemn expression, and their eyes carried either vicious or vacant looks. A few black and white-robed official Magi stood before them.

Leylin was somewhere at the edge of the group and maintained a low profile. His face was covered by a black cloak, so no one had yet recognized him. With an inquisitive eye, he stole glances at the assembled staff.

By the forefront of the professors was a tall elder wearing black robes who remained still. Strands of Mana Energy waves radiated out from his body which made the acolytes feel rather sluggish and even pressured.

[That person is definitely the chairman of Abyssal Bone Forest, a rank 2 Magus. Behind him is the overseer, although his aura is not that imposing.] -Leylin was cautiously informed by his A.I.

As for the desire to use his A.I. to scan those individuals, Leylin immediately discarded it. Right now, Aralis could not even break past the barriers of a rank 1 Magus. Besides, the might of a rank 2 Magus was extremely mysterious, and he would not risk Aralis getting found out by the chairman. Or anyone else for that matter.

'The other parties are making a statement by arriving late. We've been here 20 minutes already.'

Leylin clicked his tongue and was about to regret that his faction was weaker. But then he remembered why he was glad to be with Abyssal Bone Forest. The stronger the opponent, the better the entertainment he could get out of a fight. So long as it was within his reach to defeat them, of course.

Now, he looked at the surroundings.

Under the dimly-lit sky, the field was dead silent. The fauna had long since left the place as if they had discovered a great battle was coming.

Amongst the crowd, Leylin saw Bicky, Merlin, Nyssa, Jayden, and the like.

Jayden was at the vanguard of the acolytes, and his face was extremely gloomy. There were thick, dark circles around his eyes, and it seemed that his condition was not too great.

'He may have won the final match of the Fighting Tournament, but at what cost? He can barely stand straight without feeling the pain of that last attack Fayle hit him with... How amusing that he calls himself the only hope of our academy when I could easily kill that idiot with a turn of my palm.' -Leylin analyzed the physical condition of the so-called genius of their generation with a hidden smirk.

Thanks to Nyssa's reports, Leylin knew of what had transpired in the other academy competitions. He didn't have time to attend these events because he was too busy with his dispensary. Amidst the ongoing crisis, he trusted no one else to handle his magic crystals.

Plus, he did not have the slightest inclination toward any sport that did not involve death or gore. Excluding the few cheaters punished for their offenses, the competitions were not meant to hurt the acolytes, but to strengthen them prior to the Bloodbath. Alas, Jayden's pride had gotten the better of him, and he made the wrong call in staking his own life in the fight against Fayle. Thus, his victory had been pyrrhic.

On her part, Nyssa stood at the end of the crowd, and her whole figure was draped in bundles of gray robes, which was even more conspicuous than intended. People around her usually cringed whenever her putrid odor traveled to their noses.

[Her mutations restrict her movements and her spell casting. Do you believe she will finally perish in the deathmatch?] -Inquired Aralis.

'Perhaps. I don't care. She has already served me well enough, and if she died, it would not be a loss for me. I could simply repo her stuff in the academy as payment of her debts to my honorable business.'

Bicky and Merlin were muttering to each other, some distance from where Leylin stood.

Once she saw Leylin, who had already taken off the cloak, Bicky gave him a nervous smile. Merlin just tilted his head slightly in acknowledgment of the one he now regarded as his rival.

'Even after all I did to her, she remembers nothing. I coincidentally 'found' her when the amnesiac had kicked in and she fainted on her way to the lab. Believing I had saved her, she fell even deeper in love with me, although I played the dense motherfucker. Over the last week, she actually went as far as to ask for my support in the upcoming Bloodbath and implored me to give her a discount for my lesser explosive potions. The stupid bitch.'

Leylin then returned the gestures at Bicky and Merlin.

[What about your former potioneering senior? He's sure to have more combat potions at his disposal than most acolytes.]

'Yes, he might as well. In any case, I have no mind to worry about the fates of anyone other than myself. Nevertheless, I would very much appreciate it if those meatbags died close to me. That way I can loot them.'

"They're here! Over there, look!"

Suddenly, a ruckus was caused amongst the acolytes, which broke Leylin's train of thoughts.

Leylin inhaled a mouthful of air and raised his head to look at the distance.

On the far horizon, a black spot suddenly appeared. With the black spot gradually approaching, its size, too, grew larger and larger.

When the black spot arrived in front of Abyssal Bone Forest Academy's representatives, Leylin managed to see the full appearance of this creature.

It was a giant beetle, with eight long and sturdy legs. Each of them was over a dozen meters long. On top of the tiny head of the beetle, was a pair of compound eyes which were looking down on the masses of the Abyssal Bone Forest Academy.

[That bug has a standard defensive barrier akin to one of a Rank 1 Magus.] -Aralis notified.

Leylin mentally shrugged. Despite his knowledge that he was leagues below it in terms of power, he was not impressed by the Mysterious Entity of Magus-level strength.

At that instant, a few drops of yellowish-green saliva drooled from the giant beetle's mouth, which fell onto the ground corroding a large pit.

The surrounding acolytes backed away in unison. Their faces were pale, seemingly terrorized.

"Why are you so afraid? It's just an Abyss Steeled-Back Beetle!" -Fayle teased his schoolmates, as he puffed out his chest trying to appear brave and confident.

"Quiet, boy!" -The overseer shouted, making Fayle recoil and go back to observing the creature.

Under the firm serenity demonstrated by their professors, the acolytes then gradually recovered from their shock.

"Siley, your students were actually terrified of my baby. It seems like their morale is not good right now, hahaha…!"

A crisp male voice sounded, following which a white-robed, middle-aged Magus jumped off the back of the beetle. Although he had somewhat youthful features, his brows were snow white and his forehead was creased.

Clearly unhappy with the other party's taunt, the bald chairman Siley coldly harrumphed.

Yet, from Aralis' detection, Leylin saw that an intangible energy wave had materialized from Siley's body towards the beetle.

Then, a couple of frightened screams originated from the back of the beetle. Subsequently, a couple of gray-robed acolytes fell from the beast. Their heads collided with the ground, and a few splatters of blood stained the beetle's legs.

"Siley! You actually…!" -The white-browed Magus was in a rage, and his brows suddenly turned red.

"How is it? Your own acolytes seem quite weaker than I anticipated." -The old Siley stepped forth and released his overbearing killing intent towards the antagonistic figure.

'Judging by his beetle mount, that guy with the brows should be the chairman of Sage Gotham's Hut. Although he is also a rank 2 Magus, Chairman Siley is a Dark Magus excelling in the art of combat. Baldy would most likely defeat White Brows in a duel.' -Leylin's eyes flashed with analytic thoughts.

Just when the acolytes thought that these two Chairmen were about to do battle, a whizzing sound traveled from the sky.

An enormous horse carriage that stretched over a few dozen meters, with a pair of snow-white wings on each side, gradually descended under the control of a few condors.

The horse carriage landed steadily on the ground. The door opened, and a white-robed, golden-haired lady swiftly walked out from it.

"Guru, stop! Don't forget we have signed an agreement!"

Listening to the golden-haired lady, chairmen Siley and Guru scoffed and returned back to their respective groups.

Behind the golden-haired lady, a group of acolytes came out from the horse carriage. Their bodies evidently radiated strong energy waves.

[And that should be the Whitewoods chairwoman and her group.]

"Hehe, Siley, I hope your acolytes will be able to survive our onslaught. Wouldn't want to let your academy turn into a real graveyard." -White-Brows Guru sneered.

Behind him, the beetle gradually folded its legs, which formed a flight of steps, where many more acolytes stepped down from it.

The acolytes from both of the arriving academies looked at Abyssal Bone Forest Academy's camp menacingly, as if the acolytes here were all prey.

'Most of them are level 3 acolytes, and there is a rare number of level 2 acolytes. As for level 1 acolytes, there aren't any... Good.' -Leylin's heart bloomed with the desire to start his massacre as soon as possible.

Due to the weakening state of Abyssal Bone Forest Academy, the rules in the Bloodbath were obviously not favorable to them. Not only were they two against one, but the other side could allow their level 1 acolyte to be excluded from the Bloodbath, unlike Abyssal Bone Forest where all of their acolytes had to participate. These level 1 acolytes could only play the role of cannon fodder when they entered the deathmatch and were of absolutely no further use.

Normally, one from Abyssal Bone Forest would feel troubled over such appalling odds. But for Leylin, it just meant he wouldn't have to fret about killing people who were not worth his time in contribution points. Having level 2 acolytes and up as his opponents signified that he could annihilate all enemies and it would still be profitable for him.

'After this mandatory enlistment of their whole student base, Abyssal Bone Forest Academy will definitely be worse off once the Bloodbath is over. Given that I most definitely shall not protect anyone from my team, our casualties will be high. This day couldn't get any better.'

Leylin looked at the level 1 acolytes in his academy and noticed how they were mainly comprised of younglings and early teenagers. He chuckled with detachment within his mask, since he quite enjoyed watching people suffer and die. Whether it be kids, teenagers, or adults, it was of no consequence to him. And in this case, the mere prospect of it made Leylin pleased.

'Aralis, begin your scan for weapons and arcane devices.' -Leylin then ordered, while his inner self turned as focused and serious as his outer demeanor.

[Task established. Scanning...]

Right now Leylin was a level 3 acolyte, and his A.I.'s abilities had increased too. Most of the level 3 acolytes could not escape Aralis' detection now.

Leylin picked out the acolytes who carried magic artifacts. No matter if it was his own side or the other, he recorded them down. These people were the ones that he had to be mindful of during the Bloodbath.

Listening to the provocative tone of the other party, Chairman Siley's face darkened. He waved his hands. "Enough of this nonsense, let us begin!"

"Since you have such an earnest will to get rid of your students, how could we bear to refuse your request?" -Chairman Guru and the golden-haired lady smirked and nodded their heads.

Listening to their chairmen, the official Magi from the respective academies stepped forward and began to retrieve various strange items from their pouches, robes, or even within their bodies. After which, they began to set up a magic formation.

When they were finished with it, a series of figures and runes were arranged on the ground.

'I recognize some of these. They are runes that make the foundation sturdy, linking up their Mana Energy and creating temporary artificial cores. Undoubtedly, they are setting up the portal to the secret plane.' -Leylin's gaze sharpened, and he commanded Aralis to record all of these formations.

As for the three chairmen, after their staff had finished preparing the formation, they each stepped forward and withdrew 3 crimson-colored scrolls.

"With my name, Siley, I summon the Will of Battle which is roving around the wilderness, and activate the glorious and deathly flight of stairs…."

The 3 chairmen chanted and simultaneously tore the scrolls in their hands apart.

Crimson lightning continuously thundered down on the area above where the 3 crimson scrolls were torn, and a huge opening suddenly appeared from the void.

Countless thunder and lightning appeared from within, and noises of explosions and whistling came from the portal.

Dozens of seconds later, the void calmed down.

"This is a secret plane which is now an abandoned resources point. Any organisms and resources of value in it were scoured clean by us. Right now, it will become your battlefield…" -The blonde woman announced.