[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-above-the-mage":3,"chapter-above-the-mage-above-the-mage-chapter-36":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},2257040,4404,"Chapter 36: Fate Is Mine","above-the-mage-chapter-36",36,"\u003Cp>\"This guy\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Zeda Master thought of how Gao De had been his apprentice for so many years, yet only now did he reveal everything, never having shown the slightest flaw before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De’s depth of planning and his profound patience were utterly inconsistent with his age; the more Zeda Master pondered it, the more dread he felt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’ve indeed outmaneuvered me at every turn—I’ve suffered because of you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having pieced together everything, Zeda Master suddenly regained his composure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He spoke toward the dark mist where no figure could be seen: \"But if you have no other tricks, this farce ends here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You still underestimate my knowledge—and overestimate your arcane artifacts.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A Level 1 alchemical device cannot bridge the vast gap between us.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zeda Master gritted his teeth against the relentless agony in his sole and sneered: \"Mist Veil is a Level 1 spell, but it has no offensive power—and severe limitations.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And fortunately, I know those limitations.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s over!\" Zeda Master roared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wasn’t the reason he was trapped in this dilemma precisely because of this mist? Then let the mist vanish—and all problems would resolve themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Gao De who had exhausted his mana, stripped of Mist Veil’s cover, would be utterly at his mercy. And he knew two ways to counter Mist Veil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Strong wind and flame! There was no wind spell among cantrips, but flame spells were plentiful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he happened to know one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A red glow flared in his hand, followed by intense heat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A shaft of flame reformed into an arrow, and as he swung his arm, it shot forth—instantly becoming a blazing fire arrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Burn away your mist.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom! Boom! Boom!!! Before his words had fully faded, a shocking explosion erupted—completely unexpected by Zeda Master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Explosion! Explosion! In the blink of an eye, flames spontaneously ignited around Zeda Master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Simultaneous with the explosion, a high-pressure, high-temperature shockwave formed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The massive shockwave spread outward, violently striking surrounding objects and structures—Zeda Master, being the closest to the epicenter, was the foremost \"object.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The residual effect of his Shield Spell was instantly obliterated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The colossal force swept across Zeda Master’s body, shredding his Level 1 arcane robe outright, then tearing into his aged, frail flesh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Burning flames mixed with thick smoke surged onward, continuing to spread and devour everything in the room—including the mist released by Mist Veil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In but an instant, the mist of Mist Veil was entirely consumed by fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the mist gone, obstructed vision finally cleared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room was now a ruin: smoke hung thick in the air, light twisted through the murky atmosphere into hazy columns, slicing the chaos into irregular patches of shadow and glow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The immense pressure of the blast left the walls covered in mottled scars; a massive crack ran clean through one entire wall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All furniture inside had been overturned and shattered by the shockwave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chairs were broken, tables split into pieces, books from the shelves reduced to ash and paper scraps, the remnants still smoldering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shards of debris littered the floor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two figures lay sprawled amid the devastation, their clothing charred and tattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both lay motionless, neither dead nor alive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An eerie silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Aside from the occasional crackle of dying embers, no other sound could be heard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huh~ huh~ huh! Moments later, heavy breathing filled the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One of the two figures on the ground began to stir slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He regained a sliver of awareness, feeling searing pain all over his body, his limbs weighed down like lead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De mustered every ounce of strength to struggle upright, each movement accompanied by agonizing pain and ragged gasps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the explosion’s epicenter was Zeda Master, and though he had done his best to keep distance and lunged toward the door the instant it detonated,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the room was too small, the shockwave too swift—he could not escape its effects no matter how hard he tried.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kill a thousand, lose six hundred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, every breath Gao De took felt like a monumental effort, forcing air into his exhausted lungs; each exhale was slow and labored, like the last gasp of an ancient bellows, sluggish and reluctant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He mustered his arms to prop himself up, then trembled to his feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once standing unsteadily, Gao De used sheer willpower to temporarily suppress his injuries and pain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He dragged his weak legs step by step to the other motionless figure in the room, then knelt beside him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why... why...\" Zeda Master still breathed, and had regained a sliver of awareness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sensed Gao De’s approach, tried to lift a finger—but after several attempts, failed, only managing to whisper faintly through trembling lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to Gao De, Zeda Master’s injuries were far worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His body was covered in tattered clothing soaked with flour and blood; large areas of skin were burned, showing uneven shades of blackened and swollen flesh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some skin had even been peeled away by the heat, revealing raw pink tissue beneath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zeda Master’s eyes brimmed with pain and confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This was my final move,\" Gao De grinned, laughing freely—the most unrestrained laugh since he’d come to this world—\"You underestimated my knowledge too.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That night, he woke Amy and asked him to buy something in town—the very flour he later threw alongside the acid vial.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dust explosion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No more than 9.7 grams of flour dust per cubic meter of air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the local concentration of flour dust reached this threshold and met a sufficiently strong ignition source, an explosion could occur! In his former world, this was common safety knowledge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in this world, almost no one knew it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After learning Mist Veil’s effects, Gao De knew that relying solely on the synergy between Mist Veil and the corrupted Fang of Mist was utterly insufficient to defeat Zeda Master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was younger than Zeda Master, his physical condition superior.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the problem was—he had never trained in combat, in either his past or present life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Facing a veteran mage skilled in close-range spells, his slight physical advantage could never offset the mage’s magical superiority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only when he realized Mist Veil could be dispersed by strong wind and burned away by flame did his plan fully crystallize.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De gambled that Zeda Master would almost certainly know how to counter Mist Veil—and that he possessed a flame spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knowing the counter and possessing a flame spell, Zeda Master had no reason not to use it to dispel Gao De’s mist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So Gao De’s task was to scatter flour in the enclosed room before Zeda Master cast his flame spell, raising the airborne dust concentration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was Gao De’s final gambit! Do all you can, leave the rest to fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fate, in this case, was whether Zeda Master knew how to counter Mist Veil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If fate was not with him, Gao De’s last resort was to rely on the corrupted Fang of Mist and \"duel with spears\" against Zeda Master.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even in this worst-case scenario, the flour wasn’t useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flour dusted on Zeda Master’s body would help Gao De, whose vision was obscured by mist, better locate his target.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But none of this mattered anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because fate was with him! Even as he laughed wildly, Gao De raised the Fang of Mist high above his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pthsh!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Blood spurted, splattering Gao De’s body, mixing with the blood oozing from his own wounds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he had stabbed Yilan that night, Gao De plunged the Fang of Mist into Zeda Master’s chest, then withdrew it—his motion unnervingly practiced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One thrust wasn’t enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pulled the blade out and stabbed again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then withdrew, stabbed again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over and over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zeda Master’s breath grew fainter, his eyes wide open, fixed on Gao De, lips trembling as he gasped out an incomplete sentence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he finished, his head lolled to the side—no life remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though incomplete, Gao De knew exactly what Zeda Master had wanted to ask.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With his last shred of strength, he focused his mind on Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Origin:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>0th Level—【Human】(2\u002F7), 【Gray-Eyed Rat】(used), 【Dark Marsh Crawler】(used), 【Wolf Rat】(1\u002F7).\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the (2\u002F7) after 【Human】, Gao De grinned, and calmly answered Zeda Master’s unspoken question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He spoke to the corpse, now barely human in form: \"Why?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Because my life was stolen back from death—yours was yours to keep. Who dares play death with a man who already lost it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The one who walked out of this room alive was him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The breath he’d held so tightly finally released—Gao De lost all control of his consciousness, collapsed with a thud, and slipped into unconsciousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1422,"2026-06-19T14:28:48.629Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","98cf0a9a520db9360496b5b25592e3444a8accd3dd0bd209a3fd40ebe5c48690","above-the-mage-chapter-37","above-the-mage-chapter-35",529,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fabove-the-mage-cover.jpg"]