Chapter 603 - 362: Tentative Bombardment

Chapter 603: Chapter 362: Tentative Bombardment

’So he does get angry about it.’

’It seems he’s a person with feelings after all, capable of empathizing with the tragic plight of his own kind.’

Luoti mentally assessed Lu Cang’s emotional fluctuations.

Although Lu Cang had hidden his information, she could still get a sense of the kind of person he was from his emotional shifts and his attitude toward handling things.

This, too, was an ability of her Mind-type Authority.

The anger and disgust only lasted for a few seconds before Lu Cang regained his inner calm.

He once again looked down upon the island.

The entire island was covered in Restrictions, with the outermost layer being an Illusion Restriction that concealed the whole island.

Lu Cang’s Perception, however, was not obstructed.

Concealment-type effects were largely useless against Lu Cang.

The only illusions Lu Cang couldn’t handle were those that originated from within the Mind itself.

’As for the Restrictions...’

Luoti was also watching Lu Cang intently.

The Body-Stripping Array.

The Sealing Array.

The Skin-Ending Array.

...

Layer upon layer of Arrays completely enveloped the island. Restrictions were the most common and versatile method of isolation in this world.

Essentially every important location was covered by them.

’I’d like to see...’

’I wonder what method Lu Cang will use to break these Restrictions. The second Trial already tested his strength. He could instantly kill a Tier Seven, Second Shedding Demon.’

’Perhaps if he went all out, he could use pure destructive power to blast all the Restrictions apart.’

’But that would definitely tip them off.’

’Since they chose to set up their base here, they must have contingencies prepared. And trying to completely disrupt their Ritual while they’re on alert... would be even more difficult.’

’Combat power is certainly important.’

’But... raw power alone is hardly enough to overcome most schemes.’

’Let’s see...’

’How exactly do you plan to break through...?’

Just as Luoti was pondering this, trying to simulate how Lu Cang would go about breaking the Restrictions,

she saw Lu Cang, with a SWOOSH, transform into a streak of light.

He landed inside the island, which was piled high with skins.

’Breaking...?’

’Breaking them?’

’What about the process of breaking them?’

’Wait, how did you just land directly on the island?’

’There were over twenty protective Restrictions on the way here, and not a single one was triggered? You just passed right through them?’

Luoti grabbed her twin ponytails, pulling them down in frustration.

She hovered in the sky, her expression completely stunned.

Lu Cang had taken control of all the Restrictions. He hadn’t just passed through them; in that instant, they had all become his to command.

However, Lu Cang didn’t alter their effects.

Instead, he sent out his Perception to scout the island.

He had already measured this landmass from a distance with his naked eye.

The islands in this world were all terrifyingly massive.

Navigating the Moon Sea felt like traveling through space as understood on Earth, and the landmasses here had surface areas far exceeding many planets in the Solar System.

In most cases, one’s Perception could hardly cover an entire landmass.

But fortunately, the range of the naked eye was infinite.

And Lu Cang had learned quite a few methods for rangefinding.

This landmass had a radius of about two hundred thousand kilometers, making it much smaller than the Ruelun Continent. In the Moon Sea, it would be considered pocket-sized.

But though this sparrow was small, it was riddled with sin.

His Perception swept across the island, finding numerous concealed locations.

There were "Sealing Hides" constructed from special black skins.

They were able to block Perception.

But unfortunately for them, Lu Cang’s Perception could not be blocked, allowing him to see everything inside with perfect clarity.

This was the core stronghold of the Rose of Shedding Skin.

SWISH—

With a flicker, Lu Cang appeared inside a sealed tent made of human skin.

Before him stood a man in a white Magic Robe.

He was startled by Lu Cang’s abrupt appearance.

But before he could react, he lost consciousness and collapsed.

「Tier Six Mind Magic—Heart Burst (Level: 501)」

It was a spell that directly bombarded the Sea of Consciousness.

A straightforward Mind Attack, a battle of pure stats.

There were countless other ways to kill the man, but after the mental toll of what he’d seen, Lu Cang couldn’t help but think of using Mind Magic.

Lu Cang took his Storage Bag.

At the same time, he glanced at a table in the tent.

On the table lay a map of the island and a roster of members’ names.

’Level 7 Skin Takers...’

’There are so many of them here.’

’The "bestowed" skins...’

Lu Cang continued reading.

’The strongest Mage in the Moon Sea from 3,000 years ago?’

’A Legendary Assassin from 2,500 years ago, one of the greatest in the history of the profession.’

’And a Dragon Slayer Warrior?’

’They all sound pretty impressive...’

SWISH—

The color of Lu Cang’s eyes shifted slightly, from black to a pale blue, and the view before him changed.

Orbs of light materialized in his vision—orbs of Magic.

As Lu Cang actively shifted his perspective, the orbs, which had previously been mere background colors, became sharp and distinct.

However, compared to the sun-like radiance of Iz he’d seen before,

the light from these Mages seemed far too dim.

’Then again, that was the Iz of my imagination. It was just my own impression of him, not reality.’

’Perhaps my imagination glorified him, making him seem exceptionally powerful.’

He was distracted for only a moment before quickly refocusing.

Then,

he gently raised his hand.

From all directions, the orbs of light began to loosen and peel away...

Faint orbs of light flowed toward Lu Cang like streams of liquid.

「Tier Five Root Magic: Eternal Flame」

「Tier Five Root Magic: Magic Compression」

「Tier Five Root Magic: Delayed Fuses」

With a casual sweep, Lu Cang collected three Root Magics.

Lu Cang had now mastered over ten Root Magics, most of which were of high quality.

But there were exceptions.

Take the Root Magic 「Infusion」, for example.

Its original master was a Level 5 Mage from Atlantis City. His theory was that the Root Source was simply a manifestation of Magic Power. As long as you had enough Magic Power and infused enough of it into a spell, any magic could achieve greater Power and approach the Root Source.

It was a philosophy of pure, brutal force.

The effect of this Root Magic was simple: it allowed one to infuse even more Magic Power into a spell that had already reached its Magic Limit, thus unleashing greater Power.

After all, under normal circumstances, there’s a limit to how much Magic Power a spell can handle.

No matter how much you try to charge a Fireball Technique, you could never infuse it with the same amount of Magic Power as a Tier Six spell. This Root Magic, however, broke that Magic Limit.

The irony was that the founder of this Root Magic didn’t have much Magic Power himself.

For him, the Root Magic he’d created was practically useless.

It might have been useless for its creator,

but Lu Cang found it exceptionally practical. First, steal the enemy’s magic before the fight even begins.

Then,

he’d start stacking 「Divine Level·Heaven-Ascending Realm of Perfection」.

Lu Cang proceeded at an unhurried pace.

He had used 「Divine Level·Lighthouse of All Laws」 many times in his mental rehearsals, and he now had a knack for stealing magic. He knew how to use this Talent so silently that people wouldn’t notice for a good while.

After all, not everyone spends their day trying to recall every single spell they know.

If someone temporarily forgot how to cast a spell, they wouldn’t necessarily notice right away.

Of course, this was all on the premise that he hadn’t alerted their Perception.

SWISH—

After stealing the magic, Lu Cang flickered between several different tents. ℯ

He casually disposed of a few more people.

These were all Level 5 Reincarnators. Out in the world, they would be considered prominent figures.

In Ruelun, they would practically be revered.

But on this island... they were nothing more than the lowest-ranking cannon fodder.

’The lowest-ranking members are Level 5 Skin Takers.’

’They’re clearly taking this very seriously.’

As he moved, he also took complete control of any Restrictions he came across.

He’d also gathered a rough picture of the intelligence.

The strongest on the island were four Level 8 Skin Takers.

Two were natives of the Moon Sea, and the other two were from the Muddy Sea, but they had all gathered here by Aertemi’s will.

So far, he had found no intelligence on any Level 9 Reincarnators.

Of these four Level 8 Skin Takers, two were presiding over the Ritual, while the other two guarded the island.

The skins they wore belonged to a Level 8 Root Mage, once the most powerful Mage in the Moon Sea—Altheus;

Jiu Xi, hailed as one of the five strongest assassins in the Assassin Association;

Gang Gu, the Warrior who once slew a Tier Eight Giant Dragon;

and a... legendary An Su Disciple, a Level 8 Soul Mage.

Huh?

’An Su Disciple?’

’Legendary?’

’An Su, your disciple got himself killed 2,000 years ago and was turned into a skin suit.’

With An Su’s actual self residing in his Sea of Consciousness, this "legendary" An Su Disciple suddenly felt a bit underwhelming.

And with that underwhelming name placed alongside the other three,

Lu Cang ended up feeling that all of them were just as underwhelming as An Su’s disciple.

The sense of pressure that had been building up instantly vanished.

’So, that’s the gist of the intelligence.’

’The other Level 7 Skin Takers... should be no match for me.’

’My mission is just to destroy the Ritual.’

’In other words, I don’t need to fight them at all. As expected, infiltrating the enemy’s nest is a much more comfortable kind of battle.’

’Defensive battles where you have to protect something are just a pain.’

Lu Cang thought for a moment, and a War Spear materialized in his right hand.

After a brief pause, he switched it for a soul-white Magic Staff.

’This should do.’

「Soul-Bursting Iron Staff (+3)」

「Grade: Tier Two」

「Forging Effect: Soul Enhancement—Increases soul utilization efficiency by 64 times.」

「Enchantment Effect: Soul Burst—Increases the effect of Soul Burst-type spells by 10 times.」

’My Blacksmith and Enchanter levels are still low, so I can’t forge any High-Tier equipment yet.’

’I’ll have to make do with equipment that has simple, straightforward effects.’

’No special mechanics, just pure stats.’

Up in the sky, Luoti tilted her head.

’Wait a minute...’

’That piece of equipment?’

Luoti’s expression shifted as she looked at the "Weapon" that had materialized in Lu Cang’s hand.

Although she couldn’t see Lu Cang’s personal information, she could see the effects of the equipment he held.

’Is that thing even possible in this world?’

’It’s clearly a forged Weapon, yet it has an Enchantment Effect?’

’And it’s a Tier Two Weapon, so why does it have an absurd multiplier like 64 times?’

’Even a normal Tier Seven piece of equipment wouldn’t have an effect that ridiculous... ’

’What is he planning to do?’

’Is he going to attack directly?’

’But this island isn’t as fragile as it looks. Aertemi would never let such an important island be destroyed so easily...’

Just as Luoti was wondering about this,

six solid, brilliant Cores coalesced at the tip of Lu Cang’s Magic Staff.

’Anyway... I’ll start with a trial Sacrifice of a hundred billion souls and see what happens.’