[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-above-the-mage":3,"chapter-above-the-mage-above-the-mage-chapter-70":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},2257074,4404,"Chapter 70: [Flame Arrow]","above-the-mage-chapter-70",70,"\u003Cp>Gao De sprinted through the night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, after more than a month of training and dietary supplementation, his physical condition had improved greatly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so, by the time he reached the outskirts of the civilian district, he was already gasping for breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No one should have noticed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But with magical powers existing, just because no one saw me doesn’t mean I won’t be tracked down.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even if they do track me down, it won’t matter—I’m essentially saving lives; from any perspective, they can’t find fault with me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At worst, I’ll just expose that I’ve mastered the [Flame Arrow] spell.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After organizing his thoughts and confirming his action carried no hidden risks, Gao De finally exhaled in relief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the strange vine lashed toward the second person, he, hidden atop the roadside trees, looked down and noticed a glow from the adjacent street.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He knew it was the handheld lanterns used by city patrol soldiers for illumination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he could see the light, it meant the patrol soldiers were nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under these circumstances, Gao De acted decisively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A street’s distance ensured he could escape before the patrol soldiers arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that same distance guaranteed the patrol soldiers would notice the commotion and respond quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the vine extending from the sewer all the way to the entrance—already remarkable as a mere vine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De simply didn’t believe it could span dozens of meters to continue chasing him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All this talk, yet in the blink of an eye, who truly has time for such detailed thought?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The truth was, witnessing a monster slaughter its own kind before his eyes triggered an instinctive, visceral reaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even the spell he cast—[Flame Arrow]—was chosen subconsciously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because only this spell could generate enough noise and commotion to draw the patrol soldiers’ attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything after that was deliberate thought, after he’d calmed down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though his main goal was merely to save lives, unexpected gains weren’t absent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wind Spirit Moon Shadow,” Gao De thought inwardly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rudimentary information interface instantly appeared in his consciousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the Source column, a new entry had appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Source:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>0th Circle—[Maso Rat] (7\u002F7).\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The red-eyed monster rat’s scientific name was actually [Maso Rat].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An utterly unexpected name.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed weak, and indeed wasn’t powerful, but that didn’t change the fact it was a telluric creature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as it possessed telluric creature bloodline, it entered the 0th Circle tier and could provide Source.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De wasn’t certain how many [Maso Rat] he had killed with his [Flame Arrow] spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at least seven.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, without preparation, Gao De gained a third point of Source.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“An unexpected bonus.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Saving a life surpasses building a seven-tier pagoda; this is my due.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If it doesn’t disrupt one’s normal life, doing good deeds is always better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even without the unexpected Source gain, saving two living people tonight had genuinely brought Gao De inner joy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He returned to the herb garden at dawn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the way back, Gao De had already made his decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After this encounter with the sewer, he was nearly certain: the emergence of telluric energy was the source of the anomalies outside the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This place was no longer safe. Once the telluric energy fully formed, the flood of telluric creatures would overwhelm a small city like Hogan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Worse still, the herb garden lay in the suburbs of Hogan City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This meant he would likely be among the first “lucky” victims to face the telluric creatures’ assault.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Old ginger is indeed the spiciest,” Gao De muttered, recalling Pierre, who had already begun liquidating his assets and preparing to flee to Bremen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll leave, yes—but where, and how, must be carefully planned,” Gao De’s eyes flashed with resolve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Exhausted and drowsy after all this, Gao De did not immediately lie down to rest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he still had one thing left to do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De silently murmured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rudimentary information interface reappeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Spells:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>0th Circle—[Mage Hand], [Repair+], [Acid Splash+], [Ray of Frost], [Resistance Boost], [Flame Arrow], [Tracking Mark], [Flash], [Fatigue Touch], [Detect Magic], [Read Magic], [Blade Ward].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this “lavish” spell list, every spell except [Repair+] and [Acid Splash+] bore a small, flickering “+” after its name.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if beckoning: “Master, click me already.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little bastards, one day I’ll click every last one of you,” Gao De growled inwardly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Allocate points.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De then mentally locked onto [Flame Arrow].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Output, output, output!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A mage must first maximize output before considering anything else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More importantly, allocating points to damage spells aids Gao De in acquiring new Source—since hunting telluric creatures remains the most reliable way to gain Source.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And [Flame Arrow] was currently the highest-damage spell he possessed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, the “Big Dipper” representing the [Maso Rat] Source drifted out from within Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It flashed like lightning and merged into the [Flame Arrow] spell model.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>New branches sprouted from the original spell model.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The model, originally composed of ten star particles, instantly expanded to nineteen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the spell list, [Flame Arrow] flashed once—the “+” after its name vanished, and its name became [Flame Arrow+].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Flame Arrow+] (Evocation, 0th Circle):\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You hurl a bolt of fire at a creature or object within 120 feet (40 meters), making a ranged spell attack. On a hit, the target takes fire damage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flammable objects struck by this spell ignite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Extra: After being launched, [Flame Arrow+] may change its trajectory direction at most once, according to your will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another unexpected yet supremely practical enhancement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As an instantaneous damage spell, [Flame Arrow] normally, by standard rules, flies in a straight line toward a target point once cast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That is, once launched, the spell’s trajectory cannot be altered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this regard, [Flame Arrow] is similar to a regular arrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once shot, an arrow’s direction remains unchanged unless acted upon by external force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, certain specialized archery techniques might allow arrows to curve—but such rare exceptions are irrelevant here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, the ability granted by Wind Spirit Moon Shadow to alter [Flame Arrow]’s trajectory once is immensely overpowered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the true power of Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its “point allocation” never merely boosts spell power—it elevates the spell’s underlying mechanism.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1026,"2026-06-19T14:28:48.629Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","e332f18df05e2e0a2bdaeef566e9d9f4e6a8721bf5d395f7d8734ad453c3afad","above-the-mage-chapter-71","above-the-mage-chapter-69",529,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fabove-the-mage-cover.jpg"]