Chapter 67: Route

Milinda did not take the bait.

“Looks like we won’t find it here.”

She gave Luo De a light smile, then turned to the students.

She added: “Alright, since we can’t find it here, let’s go check the campsite from two days ago.”

Don’t rush, don’t panic—facing all emergencies, we must remain calm and composed; this is also one of the purposes of our practical study tour. Don’t forget the lesson we learned a month ago!

Her authority among the students was clearly strong.

Upon hearing this, the students offered no objection and simply reformed their line behind her.

“Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Luo De.”

“It’s fine.”

After accounting for everyone, Milinda politely bid Luo De farewell and resumed her field study journey.

But just before leaving, the teacher with dark red hair and a handsome, noble-looking black-haired boy both gave him a long, deep look.

That boy was the one who had spoken those words.

Luo De didn’t bother with a child.

As for the dark red-haired teacher, from fragments of conversation he learned her name was Rita.

And this Teacher Rita had secretly cast a spell on him, thinking it hidden.

You could tell with your toes—it was a tracking spell.

“Youth.”

Watching their retreating backs, it oddly reminded him of school-organized spring outings from his childhood.

Hum—

The [Invisible Constant Yin Yin] suddenly activated.

It expelled a faint ripple of magical energy.

This spiritual technique dispels negative magic; Luo De had never used it here before.

Far away, Teacher Rita froze in place.

She looked back from a distance.

But Luo De didn’t bother to look at her.

Gema the goblin and the half-dragon Xia Li arrived that evening.

They were dusty and exhausted.

Seeing Luo De quietly sipping hot tea by the lake, they were taken aback.

“Good heavens, Mr. Luo De, how did you get here so fast?!”

Gema said.

Her magical puppet was missing one arm and bore numerous scorch marks.

Xia Li the half-dragon was better off—only her left leg was bandaged.

“We accidentally triggered a labyrinth rule while avoiding monsters; just escaping took a full day.”

Xia Li chuckled bitterly.

“What kind of labyrinth rule?”

Luo De had Tally bring them hot tea.

He held a high-level access pass and could largely bypass the labyrinth’s rules, but that didn’t stop him from being curious.

“Adventurers call it the ‘Gate of Time.’ The rule is that time in a certain area suddenly accelerates or reverses, trapping people inside—they must find the pattern to escape.”

“Sounds not too hard.”

“This rule ignores rank. Don’t underestimate it—many have died because of it.”

Xia Li’s expression turned serious, then she remembered the man before her held an access pass—he clearly wasn’t afraid of labyrinth rules.

“Guess what? I ran into a field study group.”

While Tally cooked them a meal, Luo De recounted his encounter.

“Baha Dur Magic Academy—the top magic academy in the Aiselong Kingdom, with an extremely low admission rate. And, heh, many say they discriminate against non-human races.”

Gema sneered.

She pulled a thick, unusually large puppet arm from her spell satchel and fiddled with how to attach it to her own puppet.

“No wonder the field study group had only humans.”

“My cousin once took their entrance exam—she ranked in the top twenty for both theory and combat, yet she failed. Meanwhile, a human ranked outside the top hundred got in.”

Wait.

Aren’t goblins incapable of casting spells? Why take a magic academy entrance exam?

Luo De didn’t ask outright.

Tally, ever attentive to her master, noticed and whispered in his ear:

“Dwarves can’t cast spells, brother~”

“Oh, thanks. No—can you read minds?”

Tally giggled and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek.

Though a succubus, her behavior was restrained—even her kiss didn’t extend her tongue.

Yet Luo De felt a restless itch inside.

What’s going on?

Is it because her face looks so much like mine?

“It’s a human academy, after all. I heard humans aren’t the only ones there—halfings are the second most common race.”

Xia Li the half-dragon remarked.

Her energy had faded; she shed her leather coat, kicked off her boots, and sprawled lazily in the chair.

Unlike the Heavenly Flower Kingdom, which loudly promoted equality among all races, racial equality has always been a heated topic of debate.

The Aiselong Kingdom left public opinion unchecked.

Non-human races within the kingdom, lacking ideological guidance, were not particularly interested in discussing such topics.

Thus,

The conversation quickly shifted to “Why a magic academy, not a spiritual one?”

“Because magic is powerful, of course.”

Xia Li said.

Half-dragons, like true dragons, have innate magical talent.

This half-dragon with diluted dragon blood was especially unfortunate compared to her peers—she hadn’t awakened even one powerful native spiritual technique.

Meanwhile, the goblin Gema, who had traveled far and wide, was far more experienced.

“Since it’s a human-built academy, it naturally follows the human advancement path—damn it!”

Crack.

She overdid it and snapped off the already damaged head of her magical puppet.

Xia Li burst out laughing.

The laughter stopped abruptly when Gema calmly pulled out an identical magical puppet.

“As everyone knows, at the seventh tier, spiritual energy undergoes a qualitative change. Magic, as a form of spiritual energy, has been artificially optimized, and the path to seventh tier is far clearer.”

“A legendary mage?”

“Legendary is one path. There are also Field Mages and Arcane Mages.”

Luo De had never heard this before.

Perhaps because he wasn’t a mage.

“Think of it this way—Legendary Mages represent the peak of individual power; Field Mages require building a mage tower and govern regions—all court mages are Field Mages; Arcane Mages are researchers who study the original state of spells.”

“What about someone like me—a regular spiritual warrior? Is there a path?”

Luo De asked eagerly, intrigued.

The goblin smiled.

“No path, Mr. Luo De. Spiritual warriors aren’t like mages who split into branches and schools. There’s only one path—stronger, harder.”

“...Alright.”

If this were a game, this would be a far duller class than magic.

At that moment, Tally brought the thick soup to the two women.

She wrapped her arms around Luo De’s shoulders from behind.

“I like stronger and harder~”

Luo De smiled, breathing in Tally’s familiar sweet scent, gently stroking the back of her hand.

Right.

I have the Domination Spell—I can obtain all native spiritual techniques in full state.

Why chase after the strength of magic?

(End of Chapter)