[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-above-the-mage":3,"chapter-above-the-mage-above-the-mage-chapter-30":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Above the Mage!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2257034,4404,"Chapter 30","above-the-mage-chapter-30",30,"\u003Cp>Gao De, drenched in cold sweat from the shock of Master Seda, first washed himself, then returned to his workshop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank goodness this old bastard didn’t strike until today,” Gao De silently rejoiced, calming down and even feeling lucky again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least he had already spent all his savings and learned a new spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And fortunately, he had seized every moment, preparing many things over the past dozen days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Seda’s order to confine him had completely crushed any thought of escape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If that’s the case, there’s only one path left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fuck him!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De growled fiercely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He refused to believe that someone as extraordinary as himself could be defeated by some ancient local old man on the brink of death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he bolstered his resolve, Gao De pulled from his pocket the “Fog-Stealth Fang” he had bought for four Xien gold coins today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De’s limited spell knowledge contained no information about Fog-Stealth, so he had no idea of its specific effects.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Fog-Stealth was a first-rank spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That alone was enough to fill Gao De with boundless anticipation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Judging by the name, it doesn’t sound like an attack spell—but then again, maybe it is,” Gao De speculated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Regardless, once he repaired the “Fog-Stealth Fang,” he would know exactly what kind of spell it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De gripped the Fog-Stealth Fang, focused entirely, and cast [Repair+].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His magical energy began to overflow; a faint glow streamed from his fingertips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heavily worn runes on the surface of the “Fog-Stealth Fang” began to shimmer weakly, extending and healing, as if an invisible brush were tracing them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This process lasted about five minutes, after which a fresh layer of sweat broke out on Gao De’s forehead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a sigh, the glow at his fingertips faded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the “Fog-Stealth Fang” in his hand was not fully repaired.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only a small portion of its worn runes had healed; the majority remained broken, awaiting more magical energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t that Gao De didn’t want to continue—he had exhausted all his magical energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“With my current magical capacity, repairing a first-rank magical artifact is clearly not something achievable in a day or two,” Gao De had expected this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Repairing the Divine Guide Ring had already taken him tremendous effort; the Fog-Stealth Fang, as a first-rank magical artifact, would be even harder to restore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to that, he was more worried that [Repair+] wouldn’t work at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, it was merely a cantrip, while the Fog-Stealth Fang was a first-rank magical artifact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a tier above.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Though strengthened by Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, Repair+ is undoubtedly limited—it’s impossible for a mere cantrip to repair a high-rank magical alchemical artifact.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But thankfully, first-rank magical alchemical items are still within Repair+’s limits,” Gao De silently rejoiced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“About ten days,” he estimated his progress and concluded, “rushing won’t help—but ten days is still enough time.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stopped thinking further, carefully stowed the Fog-Stealth Fang, sat cross-legged, and began today’s cultivation!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After finishing his daily cultivation, Gao De returned to his bedroom and had just lain down to rest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could fall asleep, he heard an unusual sound.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Squeak-squeak-squeak! Squeak-squeak-squeak! Like a rat’s cry, but far too shrill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the overly quiet environment of the herb garden, it was jarringly abrupt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De immediately sprang up, alert.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along with the strange sound, a faint stench of decay and rot drifted through the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What is that?” Gao De’s heart tightened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next instant, a piercing cry of agony echoed from the apprentice room nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ahh!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Followed immediately by another scream, laced with horror and terror.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shrill sound jolted awake everyone in the herb garden, including the sleeping Amy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He woke in a panic, instantly lighting the oil lamp in his room, then instinctively turned to Gao De, “What’s going on?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Something’s happened,” Gao De said grimly, swiftly casting [Mage Hand]. A spectral hand appeared and silently extinguished the oil lamp Amy had just lit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After this, Gao De rose and approached the door, carefully opening a narrow crack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through the gap, he peered toward the source of the sound, aided by the dim candlelight of the corridor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the room of two other apprentices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The door remained tightly shut; he could not tell what had happened inside to cause such agonized cries.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, the continuous moaning from within the room suddenly ceased.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The herb garden fell utterly silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But only for an instant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom! With a violent explosion, the tightly closed door shattered into splinters and wood chips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately after, a grotesque shadow emerged from the ruined doorway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bathed in the corridor’s dim candlelight, Gao De caught a rough outline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Part wolf, part rat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It resembled a rat in appearance, with unmistakable head features.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A pair of brown eyes glowed with ferocity; its ears were enormous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sharp, curved fangs protruded from its wide mouth; its fur was a dark, swampy green, gleaming with a cold, resilient sheen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beneath the fur, defined muscle lines revealed immense strength and agility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It resembled a wolf in size—far exceeding normal rats, two meters long, nearly one meter tall at the shoulder, more like a wild wolf.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A Ground Vein creature!” Gao De’s heart recoiled in shock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was not his first encounter with a Ground Vein creature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the ones he had seen before—Gray-Eyed Rats, Dark Marsh Crawlers—were merely Ground Vein-blooded creatures with no combat ability, “the disgrace of Ground Vein creatures.” This Ground Vein creature radiating such overwhelming pressure was his first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant rat’s brown eyes swept the area, then suddenly locked onto a new target:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The door beside it had just opened; two apprentices were peering out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t just Gao De and Amy who had been awakened by the moaning—every apprentice nearby had been jolted awake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But not everyone was as cautious as Gao De.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Squeak!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant rat charged without hesitation straight toward the two apprentices peering out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De watched this unfold, his horror deepening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant rat moved so swiftly, yet the two apprentices, as if paralyzed by terror, stood frozen in place as it lunged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was obvious they would be crushed—dead or crippled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Beast!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Gao De began to mourn the two apprentices, a hoarse, vicious voice rang from the end of the corridor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The air suddenly brimmed with intense heat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An arrow composed of pure flame traced a brilliant arc through the air, as if igniting the atmosphere itself, and shot straight at the giant rat lunging for the apprentices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sensing danger, the giant rat made the correct choice instantly: abandoning its near-at-hand prey to dodge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the giant rat, having failed to spot the flame arrow at first, could not escape its fiery judgment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The flame arrow struck its waist precisely; roaring fire instantly spread, engulfing the giant rat’s body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Squeak!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant rat shrieked in pain, but its fur was remarkably tough, preventing the flames from spreading further—for now, it stabilized its wounds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The relentless heat radiating from its body kept its agony constant, fueling its ferocity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It let out another shriek and charged toward the direction from which the flame arrow had come.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, a not-tall figure emerged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Seda!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the herb garden, only Master Seda could cast such a powerful spell!\u003C\u002Fp>",1209,"2026-06-19T14:28:48.629Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","00ec03a609d0a7b09034b2b2458ec3e685e4f274a891020d364a525f33f20c8a","above-the-mage-chapter-31","above-the-mage-chapter-29",529,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fabove-the-mage-cover.jpg"]