Chapter 7: Second in History
A seventh-grade dual-element magician—this alone placed one among the ranks of the strong across the entire Yulan Continent.
But if you added "seventeen-year-old" before "seventh-grade dual-element magician," the effect was entirely different. A seventh-grade dual-element magician? The Radiant Church probably wouldn't care much, given how many experts roamed the Yulan Continent.
However...
A seventeen-year-old seventh-grade dual-element magician? Not even the Radiant Church behind the Yulan Continent could ignore it—any force on the continent would be green with envy.
"Genius, genius!!!" The eighth-grade magician, Vice Dean Derant, grew somewhat excited.
The surrounding magic instructors were all stunned. They understood perfectly well what a seventeen-year-old seventh-grade dual-element magician represented. This was a miracle... at the very least, a miracle for Ernst Magic Academy.
"Yeah." Yale, Reynolds, and George all chuckled slyly.
They had been waiting to see this exact expression on the magic instructors' faces, and it was indeed satisfying enough.
Vice Dean Derant's strength might not rank in the top three at Ernst Magic Academy, but he had weathered many storms. He quickly suppressed the excitement in his heart and walked up to Linley first. "Linley, do you know what a seventeen-year-old seventh-grade magician means?"
"Do you even need to ask?" Doehring Cowart appeared beside him at that moment, proudly stroking his white beard. "A disciple taught by me, Doehring Cowart—how could he be anything less?"
As a soul spirit, Doehring Cowart's presence was undetectable to the magic instructors present, who were still far from the Saint realm.
"Seventeen years old," Derant sighed. "In the entire history of Ernst Magic Academy, when ranking by age from youngest to oldest among all students who have reached the seventh-grade magician level, you are the youngest—ranked first in history. The original first-place holder, a genius who reached seventh-grade at nineteen, later became a Saint-level Archmage."
A silver-haired old man walked over as well. "Not just in Ernst Magic Academy's history, but even in the recorded history of the entire Yulan Continent, when ranking by age from youngest to oldest among those who reached seventh-grade magician, you rank second in history."
The history of the entire Yulan Continent spanned a far longer time and a much broader scope. Ernst Magic Academy couldn't compare.
"Second in history?" Linley was also shocked.
How many geniuses had the Yulan Continent produced throughout its history? For him to rank second was an absolutely terrifying statistic.
"The number one in Yulan Continent history was a Saint-level Archmage from over eight thousand years ago. He became a seventh-grade magician at the age of sixteen. The original number two, now number three, became a seventh-grade magician at eighteen. That person ultimately only reached the ninth-grade magician level. This was related to a major blow he suffered later in life, which drastically changed his temperament. In other words... excluding you, of the top ten geniuses in history, six became Saint-level Archmages, and four became ninth-grade Grand Mages."
Generally, a seventh-grade magician was honored as a Great Magician.
An eighth-grade magician was honored as a Magister.
A ninth-grade magician was honored as a Grand Mage.
A Saint-level magician was also called a Saint-level Archmage or Saint Archmage.
"In other words, with your talent, becoming at least a ninth-grade Grand Mage is absolutely certain. All you need is time. And if you continue to cultivate diligently like this, your chances of reaching the Saint realm are also very high. After all, you are now the second-youngest seventh-grade magician in history." The silver-haired old man looked at Linley and spoke solemnly.
Linley had hopes for the Saint realm, but they weren't overly ambitious.
Because Linley understood one thing: magicians advanced more slowly than warriors.
Both warriors and magicians required mental energy, but the degree of need differed.
Magicians didn't train their bodies; they focused solely on mental energy. The vast majority of their effort was spent cultivating mental energy. Controlling magical power and the elemental energy of the world both depended on mental energy. A powerful magician's mental energy was equally terrifyingly strong.
Warriors, on the other hand, were different.
Comparatively speaking, the most important thing for a warrior was the body, followed by mental energy and battle qi. A strong body was needed to withstand enough battle qi, while mental energy was used to better control the use of battle qi.
For example, comparing a seventh-grade magician to a seventh-grade warrior, the difference in mental energy could be nearly tenfold.
"Even if I can eventually cultivate to become a Saint-level Archmage, it will definitely take a very long time. With my Dragonblood Warrior talent, I estimate that reaching the Saint realm will be much faster." Linley was well aware of his family's history. Dragonblood Warriors generally needed only a few decades—a relatively short time—to step into the Saint realm.
Moreover...
A Dragonblood Warrior who entered the Saint realm was incredibly powerful, considered a top-tier expert even among Saints.
"Linley, you are the most accomplished student in our academy's history. Please stay in the academy for the next two days. I will invite the best painters and the finest sculptors to have your portrait and statue preserved in our academy." Vice Dean Derant immediately declared.
This was the second-greatest genius in the entire Yulan Continent's history, naturally a glory for the academy.
"Portrait?" Linley was taken aback.
He thought about having to maintain a single pose for a long time in front of a painter or sculptor. Imagining that scene, Linley couldn't help but feel that being the second-greatest genius in Yulan Continent history wasn't such a wonderful thing after all.
******
The greatest genius in Ernst Magic Academy's history, the second-greatest genius in the entire Yulan Continent's history. At just seventeen years old, he had already reached the seventh-grade dual-element magician level. This shocking news spread throughout Ernst Magic Academy at an astonishing speed.
"Seventh-grade dual-element magician? Only seventeen? How is that possible?"
"No way it's false. So many magic instructors from the academy were present, and Vice Dean Derant has already invited painters to prepare Linley's portrait, to keep his image forever in our academy."
"Heavens, seventeen years old and already a seventh-grade magician. At this rate, even if it takes ten years to reach eighth-grade and twenty years to reach ninth-grade, he'll be a ninth-grade Grand Mage in his forties. He could probably become a Saint-level Archmage before he's a hundred."
"I just looked through some library books. Besides Linley, of the top ten geniuses in history, six became Saint Archmages and four became ninth-grade Grand Mages. Linley is truly incredible."
...
Such discussions filled every corner of Ernst Magic Academy. If a student's achievements were only slightly better than others, they might face jealousy. But when a student's achievements reached a level that commanded awe—ranking second in the entire Yulan Continent's history—all others felt was admiration and reverence.
In their hearts, Linley's future accomplishments were immeasurable, beyond their ability to compare.
And those who had once called Dixie the academy's number one genius fell silent.
Linley was unquestionably the academy's number one genius, and the absolute number one genius in Ernst Magic Academy's five-thousand-plus-year history. Dixie was only a sixth-grade magician now; who knew when he would reach seventh-grade?
"Linley, a seventh-grade magician?" Dixie, who had just finished his meditation, fell silent upon hearing the news brought by his sister, Delia.
He had finally felt a bit of balance when he surpassed Linley at sixth-grade, but this news plunged him into an abyss. Linley's pace of advancement was too fast; even if he chased desperately, Linley would only leave him further and further behind.
"Brother." Delia called softly, worried about her brother.
Delia knew well that her brother had always been extremely proud, cold toward others, and extremely strict with himself. He never admitted defeat to anyone, but ever since Linley rapidly advanced from fourth-grade to fifth-grade magician, her brother had felt threatened.
He had worked very hard and reached sixth-grade magician last year.
But Linley had...
"Don't worry. I'm fine." Dixie slowly shook his head. "Delia, I suddenly feel that staying in the academy isn't very useful anymore. I plan to apply for graduation and return to my empire soon, back to my family."
Delia was stunned.
******
In a private suite at the Waldorf Hotel, the room had four bedrooms and two living rooms—quite spacious. Linley and his three brothers were now living here.
Ever since the news of Linley reaching seventh-grade magician spread, Dormitory 1987 had become impossible to stay in. A constant stream of visitors came to see Linley, forcing him to retreat to the Waldorf Hotel. The Waldorf Hotel had deep connections, so others couldn't disturb them there.
"Third brother, you really are the type to remain silent for years and then stun everyone with a single move." Yale sighed.
Linley smiled faintly.
This was actually a decision Linley had made after discussing it with Doehring Cowart. The Baruch family was still very weak. If they wanted to rise quickly, revealing Linley's seventh-grade magician strength was undoubtedly the fastest way.
A seventeen-year-old seventh-grade dual-element magician would attract invitations from all sides, naturally offering very high conditions.
This way, Linley's starting point would be much higher.
"Third brother, I won't hide it from you anymore. The 'Dawson Chamber of Commerce,' one of the three great chambers of commerce on the continent, is my family's. Are you interested in joining our Dawson Chamber of Commerce?" Yale looked at Linley. In truth, Yale really hoped Linley would join the Dawson Chamber of Commerce.
The second-greatest genius in Yulan Continent history—if such a person joined the Dawson Chamber of Commerce, his future status would certainly be high. This would also greatly benefit Yale's position in his family.
"Dawson Chamber of Commerce?" Reynolds was the first to exclaim. "Wow, Yale, I always knew you were from the Dawson family, but there are so many families named 'Dawson.' I never thought you were the Dawson family of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce! The Dawson Chamber of Commerce—that's incredibly wealthy!"
George also glanced at Yale.
"Big brother Yale, this..." Linley hesitated.
"Don't worry about it. You're my brother, and I won't force you." Yale smiled and said. "I can't guarantee much, but if you join our Dawson Chamber of Commerce, money won't be a problem at all. At the very least, a hundred million gold coins is no issue."
"A hundred million gold coins?" Linley, George, and Reynolds were all stunned.
A hundred million gold coins—what a terrifying amount of wealth.
Even the total assets of the largest noble family in the entire Fenlai Kingdom might not reach a hundred million gold coins.
"Linley, your brother's family is way too rich, isn't it? A hundred million gold coins..." Even Doehring Cowart was stunned.
A famous sculpture master's signature work could sell for over a million gold coins, which was already astonishing. But how many such works were there in total?
"Third brother, I can tell you this. On the Yulan Continent, aside from the other two great chambers of commerce, even the four empires and two alliances probably couldn't cough up this many gold coins in one go. As for those kingdoms, hmph." Yale said with certainty.
The four empires and two alliances all had their own Saint-level experts. But they also had to maintain massive armies and run entire nations. Although they were wealthy, pulling out a hundred million gold coins in one go was extremely difficult. At the very least, it would require extensive internal discussion.
For someone who wasn't yet a Saint-level expert, they wouldn't do this.
Only the three great chambers of commerce could. Their wealth was terrifyingly immense. Although their military strength was considerable, it fell far short of the four empires and two alliances, so they were even more desperate to recruit top-tier experts.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Suddenly, a knock came at the door.
Yale frowned and walked over. Opening the door, he said, "Didn't I say not to disturb us?"
The manager of the Waldorf Hotel said awkwardly, "Young Master Yale, a Red Cardinal of the Radiant Church, along with three White Priests and a squad of Temple Knights, has arrived outside the hotel."
Yale was stunned.
A Red Cardinal—second only to the Pope in the entire Radiant Church hierarchy? Every Red Cardinal's status was far higher than that of a kingdom's king. A Red Cardinal personally leading a group—this wasn't something he, a young master of the Dawson Chamber of Commerce, could block.
"Third brother's appeal really is strong enough..."