A mage's journey begins with a battle mage.

Chapter 76 Q&A

A flash of white light, and Jiang Shuzhou was teleported to that familiar place.

The place where he first entered the game.

The stars are dazzling, like the pinnacle of the cosmos, where you can overlook the stars.

On the high platform, a monk dressed in a dharma robe extended an invitation to him.

"You've come. I've been waiting for you for so long."

"That's what the monk said."

"You must be the legendary mage Roland, right?"

Although he used a question, Jiang Shuzhou's tone was very confident.

"We have limited time, let's not talk about these obvious things."

He admitted it.

"Then I'd like to know about the game."

"Do you really think this is just a game?"

Roland asked a question in return, and then continued speaking without waiting for Jiang Shuzhou's reply.

"There are three years left. In three years, the gods will descend upon the world to gain new believers."

"New believers?"

Jiang Shuzhou pondered the meaning of the sentence repeatedly, and after a moment of thought, he understood.

Believers are the lifeblood of a god. Theoretically, as long as there are enough believers, a god with weak divine power can eventually grow into a powerful god. Conversely, if there are too few believers, even a powerful god will fall into a weak one.

While the hundreds of billions of people on Earth are not many compared to the entire Alliance of Saints, they are still a considerable number. If they all worshipped a single god, they could support a powerful deity.

Thinking of this, Jiang Shuzhou's face turned grim. He did not want his hometown to become a paradise for the gods.

"But don't worry, I will take action."

"Those who refuse to submit to the kingdom of the gods will be protected by the Mage Alliance."

"This is the result of the help I gave you in securing this victory."

Roland's gaze seemed to pierce through the hood as he made a promise to Jiang Shuzhou that he would help a part of the people of Blue Star overcome their difficulties.

"Thank you for your generosity."

Jiang Shuzhou was surprised that the senior in front of him was so easy to talk to and was willing to lend a helping hand.

"Alright, do you have any other questions? Heim's intervention has given us more time to talk, but you should know that based on the pact I made with the gods, we can't talk for too long. And don't ask any questions that involve the core of the game; I won't answer them."

"I'd like to ask, why is it so troublesome for mages to learn skills?"

"Because I'm too lazy to help idiots, and they don't deserve to be mages."

Since you've said that, what else can I say?

Fortunately, I wasn't among them.

"I'd like to ask what the price is?"

"Now, you don't have to pay any price."

That means paying the price later.

Jiang Shuzhou's mind raced, and he had already guessed most of the things that were going on.

"I'd like to ask, are any countries on Earth aware of the divine descent?"

"They knew, more or less, that someone had given them hints."

"..."

Jiang Shuzhou was speechless now, but clinging to his last shred of hope, he decided to try and get some extra benefits.

"Look at me, I have nothing of value, how can I possibly withstand those evil gods? Do you have anything that can help me...?"

"Knowledge is the most precious treasure, and besides, haven't I already given you so much?"

Seeing through Jiang Shuzhou's intentions, Roland chuckled lightly, but didn't take it to heart.

Good grief, you've chosen me?

Jiang Shuzhou understood Roland's meaning. It was obvious that the knowledge of the Gospel of Flesh and Blood was given to him by Roland, and his own talent probably also had his shadow.

"Lord Roland, as we all know, the war of public opinion is also very important. Could you allow me to participate to some extent in the various promotional activities for the game?"

"This would help resist the gods and hinder the spread of faith."

"Of course, young man. You have an outstanding ability to stir up public opinion storms. You will be an excellent schemer in the future."

Wow, you're quite the schemer when it comes to praising others, aren't you? You're good at praising people.

However, although Jiang Shuzhou did not gain any substantial benefits at this time, he gained the weapon of criticism. From then on, he could directly use official platforms to release videos and frantically slander the gods.

This is a silver lining amidst misfortune; at least we managed to get something.

Looking at Jiang Shuzhou, Roland seemed to see his past self, a dark period that was also the beginning of his glory.

Seeing Roland deep in thought, Jiang Shuzhou didn't say anything. He had already told him what he needed to tell, and there was no use in knowing what he shouldn't know now. Since the senior had been so accommodating, it was only right for the junior to wait a little longer.

After a moment, Roland came to his senses.

"Finally, let me give you a piece of advice: under no circumstances should you ignite the divine fire. It is easy to ignite the divine fire, but difficult to extinguish it."

"Alright, time's up. Claim your reward."

After he finished speaking, a ball of light appeared in front of Roland.

Jiang Shuzhou naturally understood his meaning, so he took two steps forward and touched the ball of light with his hand.

"Relax, pain is normal," Roland said.

The instant he touched the orb of light, a sharp pain shot through his bones; it was as if his soul was being torn apart. The orb of light merged with Jiang Shuzhou's body, and then Jiang Shuzhou's consciousness plunged into darkness.

"One month later, the Soul Weapon will hatch from your soul without any side effects."

These were the last words Jiang Shuzhou heard before he fell into a deep sleep.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Report!"

"speak!"

Inside the heavily guarded military base, General Liu was in a somber mood. Just a short while ago, all three members of the Dragon Soaring Team had fallen into a coma.

This is a very important matter; these three individuals represent the culmination of the entire nation's efforts.

I wonder if anyone has noticed that Chinese live streams almost never mention the Dragon Team. Even when introducing them, they only mention them briefly and don't show them any footage. This is all for the sake of maximum secrecy.

They wouldn't even want to broadcast if the event organizers hadn't mandated it.

"The Dragon Team is mostly unharmed; the initial assessment is that they may have fainted."

"Nonsense! Don't I know they're unconscious? What I want to know is, why are they unconscious?"

"this……"

"Our experts have determined that their lives are not in danger, likely due to the so-called 'soul weapon'."

"Dr. Zhao said from the side."

"Explain in detail."

"..."

"?"

What's going on? Why are you silent?

General Liu, seeing Dr. Zhao's embarrassed expression, finally realized what was going on.

It turns out it's all just speculation, with no theory or practice whatsoever.

If Professor Wang were still here...

At this moment, General Liu began to miss the old professor. The old professor could always provide an explanation for all his questions, and his research on various aspects of the game was unparalleled.

However, he is no longer here.

"Alright, you can go now. Take good care of them and make sure nothing happens to them. Report to me immediately if anything happens."

General Liu waved his hand, letting Dr. Zhao go. He was very agitated. Although Professor Wang might be able to explain this matter if he asked him, it involved classified information.

A soldier's duty is to obey orders, and there are some things he cannot make decisions about. He would not leak information to Professor Wang in exchange for the answer to the question.

However, as far as he knew, due to the mysterious Shadow of the Pursuit of Law's victory, the higher-ups were now preparing to recall Professor Wang and restart the Mage Project. It was just unknown whether Professor Wang would still be willing.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

At Professor Wang Bowen's home in Beijing.

"Old Wang, what are you doing? It's time to eat."

Mrs. Wang looked at her husband, who was over fifty years old, and was now addicted to the internet every day, but she had no complaints.

It's always a good thing for people to be open to new things.

"Gui Lan, I'm watching the game! Wait a minute!"

Professor Wang's voice came from inside the tightly closed door.

"Dinner's ready. Remember to eat when you're done with your work."

After giving her a brief instruction, Madam Wang didn't say anything more. She knew that her husband's career had been going poorly lately.

He was originally the project leader, but after finally achieving some results, he was asked to leave.

Sigh, why bother? With Bowen's academic level, if he had done something else, he would probably have made a name for himself by now.

However, as a wife, all she could do was offer her support; she had been prepared for this for twenty years.

"Ring ring, ring ring."

The phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, Mrs. Wang frowned. Wasn't this the research institute's number?

After kicking her husband out of the house, how dare she even call?

"Hey, what's up?"

"Oh, is that so?"

"Old Wang has some business to attend to right now, so please send someone over to discuss this in person."

"My attitude is the same as Lao Wang's; I support whatever decision he makes."

"You guys handle it. I don't know anything about it either. You can discuss it when the time comes."

After a few perfunctory words, Mrs. Wang hung up the phone.

I was wondering why the research institute suddenly called; it turns out they wanted to ask Lao Wang to come out of retirement again.

Madam Wang neither agreed nor refused. She demanded that the other party come over in person to discuss the matter. Since she was asking for a favor, she had to show the attitude of someone who was asking for a favor.

They're treating our old man like a football, kicking him away today and kicking him back tomorrow.

A good ten minutes later, Professor Wang walked out of the room with a happy expression, clearly indicating that something good had happened.

"What's wrong? Why are you in such a good mood?"

"I told you, the mage is right! All those so-called magic network mages are just rotten trash!"

Professor Wang was still in shock at this moment, and completely lacked his usual approachable intellectual demeanor.

"Alright, what kind of competition is this? It's so intense."

"Ahem, it's nothing, I'm just a little excited after my guess was confirmed."

With a cough, Professor Wang finally came to his senses. Although his words still carried a hint of joy, they were at least a little more refined.

"By the way, Lao Wang, your old research institute called and wants you to go back."

"What? You agreed?"

"I neither agreed nor refused. I left him hanging for a day and told them to come talk to you the day after tomorrow."

"Good, it should have been like this a long time ago. Even a clay figure has some temper. When I'm useful, they use me to the death, and when I'm no longer useful, they kick me aside. Now that they see I'm useful again, they come back to me."

Professor Wang snorted coldly, then continued speaking.

"Now it's my turn to name my price. If I don't make them bleed, I'm not a Wang!"

Looking at Professor Wang, who was puffing up in anger, Mrs. Wang chuckled. Sure enough, after all these years, he was still the same.

Some were happy, some were sad, and in this atmosphere, the competition came to a complete end.