Age of Adepts

The first person that Greem met for an audience after coming out of seclusion was Goblin ‘God of War’ Tigule.

When Tigule read the comprehensive and detailed report, fine beads of cold sweat couldn’t help but appear on his forehead. His one and a half meter tall body also started trembling uncontrollably.

In the end, Tigule was only an advanced First Grade goblin. He could only unleash the might of a Second Grade while piloting a magical machine. As such, a terror gripped his entire being from the depths of his soul when he stood before Greem and endured his cold and emotionless gaze.

The past few decades had been enough to create a rift between Tigule and Vanessa, causing them to walk down two very different paths. At the very least, Tigule’s name very rarely appeared in the Magic Energy Association observation reports submitted by Meryl.

That was the main reason that Greem had summoned Tigule.

After reading through the entire report, Tigule almost seemed to have aged by a few decades. His spirit, will, and energy utterly had collapsed.

“My lord…these actions of Vanessa do not represent the goblin race. I…I……” Tigule still stood in front of Greem. He was desperate to explain his stance, but he could no longer formulate words in his mouth. He didn’t even know what he was saying anymore.

“This is a massive operation and a considerable movement. Vanessa could not have accomplished this alone. She must have had to sway sufficiently influential and powerful individuals amongst the goblins to her side. How do you think I should deal with these people?” Greem stared coldly at Tigule. He was dressed in a red robe, and his face was oddly pale.

“My lord, my lord. You must not doubt the loyalty of us goblins! Your compassion and benevolence over the years have already won the admiration and trust of the goblins. I dare say that most of us are on your side, with the exception of a few stubborn conservatives.”

“Stubborn conservatives? Which is to say, you know of these people as well?”

“Yes!”

It was a simple word, but Tigule hesitated tremendously before he spoke.

“This Magic Energy Association had already been active for a while by the time I received this report. They are now actively pushing towards that ‘Secession Plan.’ Tell me, how should I deal with this group of individuals?” Greem spoke as if it was no big deal, but Tigule’s heart was thumping loudly with every word.

How could Tigule not know of the adepts’ hatred and cruelty towards traitors after all these years of mingling amongst them?! As much as he still wanted to protect Vanessa at the moment, he would have to consider whether he would drag the entire goblin race into an abyss of demise.

Moreover, though Tigule did not approve of Vanessa’s decision, he did not actively stop her actions either. The unspeakable reason for that was simple. Deep in his subconscious, Tigule might just be hoping for Vanessa’s operation to succeed.

In the past few decades of the Magic Energy Association’s development, Vanessa had come into contact with and convinced many vital individuals in the goblin faction. These individuals either joined her side or ignored her call for action. In the end, it was only a tiny minority that actively sourced the Crimson Clan’s higher-ups with information.

These people who stood on the sidelines and watched probably had similar thoughts as Tigule deep in their hearts.

They didn’t want to get involved, but they would be happy to see the plan succeed. Such a line of thought was dangerous!

If the Crimson Clan were to pursue the issue, a great purge of the goblins would be unavoidable. Should the clan raise their butcher’s knife against the goblins, the few clan branches and factions that were in opposition to them would most certainly jump forth and aggravate the situation, causing the affair to rise in severity and intensity.

If such a thing were to happen, the goblin race was likely to never recover from the aftermath. Their race would forever be relegated to a second-rate faction within the clan. Obviously, this was not a fate that Tigule could accept.

Faced with the clan leader’s pressing questions, Tigule could only grit his teeth with determination and make a vow, “My lord, rest assured! Leave this affair to me. I…I will deal with this problem to your satisfaction.”

At this point, Tigule hoped to obtain as much authority in dealing with this issue as he could, regardless of how hopeless it seemed.

It was only when he had the authority in his hands that he could selectively prune away the ‘bad goblins’ and keep the other factions at bay. It was the only way to prevent the affair from growing in scale and ultimately resulting in the oppression of the entire goblin faction.

Greem took a look at Tigule. Finally, he spoke, “You are a veteran that has followed me for several decades now. I have this much trust in you, at least. I will leave this matter in your hands. Remember to summon Snorlax, Locke, and Drusilla once this meeting is over. Deal with this problem as quickly as you can and in the shortest time possible.”

“I understand, my lord! I will deal with it.”

After promising to manage the issue satisfactorily, Tigule respectfully bowed and exited the room.

Once Tigule had left, shadows flickered in the meeting hall. A green plant that had been placed in a corner of the room shifted into Snorlax’s likeness after some shifting and twisting.

“You heard everything Tigule said earlier, didn’t you? He will lead the matter of dealing with the Magic Energy Association. However, I ask you to keep a good eye on him for me. Make sure he does not overstep his boundaries. If he tries anything funny,” Greem took out the golem talisman to summon the elementium magical machine and tossed it to Snorlax, “You must stop him! If this ends well, I will help you resolve this bloodline conflict of yours.”

Snorlax’s innate potential was not comparable to a human’s, after all. Even though he had also ingested the bloodline reconstruction potion of a serpentine bloodline, his ability to absorb and manifest the bloodline power was far inferior to Gargamel’s. At the moment, Snorlax was not only unable to display a serpentine head, but he also could not even manifest the scales properly. The green scales on his body grew in scarce patches, here and there, looking nothing like the scales of a snake.

Snorlax caught the talisman, passion and excitement written all over his little green face. He patted himself loudly on the chest. “Rest assured, master! Those short-sighted fools won’t be able to cause much trouble while I’m around.”

“Mm. Go!”

Snorlax’s heart had been feeling fairly empty, having been unable to come into contact with Greem for such a long time. He simply didn’t feel secure in his position. Now that Greem was throwing a bone his way, his spirit was bolstered and invigorated. He was so excited that even his beady little eyes seemed to be glowing with energy.

Once Snorlax marched away excitedly, Greem hesitated for a moment and finally agreed to an audience with Billis.

Seven minutes after he sent out the message, Billis arrived in a hurry at the top floor to meet his hermit-like clan leader.

“You wanted to see me? Speak, what is the matter?” Greem yawned softly, seemingly tired and without energy.

The bloodline replacement from earlier had exhausted far too much of his Spirit and willpower. Moreover, his power was also continuously being exhausted while the new bloodline assimilated with his flesh and soul on the most fundamental level. At this moment, there was no doubt that Greem needed rest and nourishment above all else.

In all honesty, if it wasn’t for the fact that Billis had followed him for so long and had been one of the most capable members of the Crimson Clan during its infancy, Greem might not even have agreed to an audience with this advanced Second Grade small fry. That was particularly the case with his current status and position.

“My lord, I…I can no longer advance down the path of my evolution.” The bug adept, having waited several months before being granted an audience, knew how precious time was to him. He cut no corners and went straight to the heart of the problem.

“Oh?” Greem paused for a moment when he heard this. It was then that he straightened his body, blue light gleaming in his black eyes. He started to take a serious ‘assessment’ of the bug adept before him.

Even though the bloodline assimilation currently happening within him took up much of his Spirit, and even though Billis was enveloped in a layer of forcefield, the massive gulf in Spirits allowed the Chip’s scans to penetrate the instinctual defenses.

While Billis shivered beneath Greem’s magical gaze, Greem had already received the data he required.

[Billis. Advanced Second Grade. Profession: Bloodline Adept.

Bodily Attributes: Strength 7 | Physique 2 | Agility 7 | Spirit 27.]

One had to admit, as a summoner adept that relied on his insects to fight, Billis lacked the opportunity to compete on the battlefield personally. He rarely had the chance to refine and train his own body. Thus, his bodily attributes could be said to be utterly pathetic when compared to other Second Grade adepts!

However, these low attribute scores were not a big issue. With sufficient time and resources, obtaining decent attributes was hardly a problem. On the contrary, what limited Billis’ evolution upwards wasn’t his body– it was the Queen Bug.

From the very start, the Queen Bug that Acteon had obtained through some unknown means had a limit of its own. The limit of its potential was Third Grade. The decision to switch hosts and separate from Acteon to reassimilate with Billis further exhausted its potential for evolution.

Consequently, when Bug Adept Billis reached advanced Second Grade, he could feel the decline in the speed of his improvement. In fact, it almost seemed like it wouldn’t budge at all.

The reason Billis was in such a hurry to see Greem was naturally to obtain his help in finding a new direction, such that he could continue evolving.

The same problem existed for all bloodline adepts to varying degrees of severity.

The exhaustion of evolution potential would mean that their adept path had come to an end. They would not be able to improve by a single step, even if they were to waste hundreds of years meditating. That kind of despair, which was etched deep in one’s soul, was the most torturous of them all.

With Billis’ potential, he would have required three to four centuries of development before he would have run into the limit of his potential. He would have been in the latter half of his lifespan by then. However, as he followed behind Greem’s meteoric steps and became one of the most capable members of the Crimson Clan, he managed to run into this wall much more prematurely, in a mere hundred years’ time.

It was an unfortunate event, but an incredible blessing of sorts, as well!

Whether this would end up being a fortune for Billis would be up to his luck now.