Chapter 27: The Wheel of Fate Begins to Turn 5500
A warning, and also an expectation.
"One day, one day..." Qin Mengliu stretched out her right hand straight, and between her spread fingers, strands of five-colored spiritual energy lingered.
Clenching her right fist, guided by the girl's will, the five-colored spiritual energy finally condensed into a dim purple halo, coating her young fist with a layer of splendor. Tiny particles of dust, upon contact with that silent purple light, became dazzling, the light of disintegration—this was the Primordial Magnetic Divine Light! A pure power capable of shattering everything! It is mine! My power!
Gazing at the unreachable Big Dipper, the girl clenched her fist wreathed in purple light and quietly repeated: "One day! My fist shall make me the heaven that towers above all!"
---
"This power is truly incredible."
Lisa stretched out her own right hand, and between the girl's spread fingers, wisps of blue-green electric current flickered. She watched the arcs dancing between her fingers with a hint of intoxication, speaking softly: "Stronger than ordinary demon hunters, easier to control, and far more powerful. This technique called Current Drive actually surpasses the centuries-old inheritance of the Dragonmen!"
Compared to ordinary Dragonmen, who could only roughly use electricity to numb magical beasts or enhance metal weapons, the arcs between Lisa's fingers were perfectly ordered. They coiled around the girl's fingers, spiraling clockwise, calm yet containing astonishing power.
"Of course. This is a technique used by legendary experts, beings on the level of Demon Lords. If this couldn't surpass your Dragonmen's crude empirical summaries, that would be truly strange."
Syndicate squirmed its body with some disdain. This was precisely the technique it had obtained from Joshua through Steel Force transmission, a method for controlling one's own magnetic field and electric currents. If the practitioner possessed a lightning-type magical bloodline, the effect would be even better. If a magical beast without any inherited techniques obtained it, it could make one unit of effort yield ten or even a hundred times the effect.
Through the radiation Syndicate itself possessed, combined with the stimulation brought by Current Drive, Lisa's previously sealed bloodline was unlocking very quickly. The girl had gone out today because she sensed her power had clearly strengthened, so she sought out the Great Elder, requesting another test of her talent.
The Great Elder had originally been unwilling to hold another test for someone who couldn't awaken. But when he saw the arcs flickering between Lisa's fingers, he couldn't help but gape in shock—and the results of the second test were even more astonishing. Not only the Great Elder, but even Lisa's father, the captain of the demon hunting team who had come specifically to watch after hearing the news, felt immense shock: They simply couldn't understand why Lisa, who had been unable to awaken before, had suddenly succeeded in awakening power no less than that of an adult awakened Dragonman after just over ten days. And most importantly, Lisa hadn't relied on the village's ritual—she had done it entirely on her own!
"Perhaps this is the special trait of purebloods... It's said that in ancient times, Dragonmen had no awakening rituals, and there weren't as many awakened individuals as now. Everyone gained power through their own will and diligent training. Lisa, you might reach the level of our ancestors."
After solemnly recording Lisa's name in the list of awakened ones, the Great Elder spoke earnestly to the girl: "But even if your talent is extraordinary, you must not slacken in training. Later, go to the training team and try to participate in the basic training of the demon hunters."
Subsequently, Lisa went to the demon hunter encampment in the corner of the village and joined other children who had successfully awakened in training. The Dragonman girl paid no attention to her peers' expressions of surprise, joy, or gnashing teeth. Instead, she earnestly studied the hunting techniques of the village's veteran demon hunters and the methods for controlling her own power.
But after listening for a long time, Lisa discovered that while the former was acceptable, the latter—the village demon hunters' methods for controlling electric current—was on an entirely different level compared to the Current Drive taught by Syndicate. The comprehensiveness and precision of this cultivation method from another world surpassed the primitive techniques of the demon hunters by countless times.
After class ended, Lisa returned home to report the good news to Mr. Syndicate, who had given her all of this.
"Alright, Lisa, stop kneading me. You should be training now, consolidating your foundation."
The Flame Demon, held in the Dragonman girl's arms and being kneaded like a pet, suppressed its anger and said impatiently: "Two hours a day, no more, no less. Less won't be effective; more will lead to mistakes from fatigue—the backlash from Current Drive isn't as simple as spitting up a little blood. It's a massive explosion that will tear you apart! Even I can't save you then."
"Mm! Yes, sir!"
The girl agreed energetically, but she didn't let go of Syndicate, nor did she let this peculiar creature—which called itself a Flame Demon but looked more like a slime—go back to reading. Instead, she placed it in a stone dish.
"What are you doing?"
"Giving you today's portion of blood, sir."
The Dragonman girl raised a slender index finger. On the fingertip, a drop of bright red blood condensed, then fell into the stone dish. Syndicate, lying in the dish, didn't refuse. It absorbed the blood, and a faint red light flickered on its body.
"Your bloodline is unlocking faster than I expected. At this rate, you'll be able to fully awaken your Dragonman bloodline within a month."
Syndicate said lazily, absorbing the blood's energy while speaking: "But don't be too complacent. Your bloodline is just the foundation. True power comes from training and combat. Current Drive is just the beginning. There are more advanced techniques waiting for you."
Lisa nodded seriously, her eyes shining with determination.
---
In another corner of the village, inside an underground chamber.
Several elderly Dragonmen, their faces etched with worry, spoke in hushed tones: "Hundreds of years ago, the battle between the Dragon God and the apocalypse never truly ended. When the Dragon God awakens, the 'apocalypse' will also revive. After that, the real decisive battle will begin."
"A battle that will determine the fate of our 'Chronos World'—whether this world will be destroyed or reborn."
---
In the void.
A Winged Demon hovered in the temporal turbulence. Before it floated a small communication light screen, and it was using magic to communicate with an entity on the other end.
"Great Lord, the advance team has been scattered. We cannot observe the origin point of that life fluctuation!"
This Greater Demon, possessing the strength of the Ultimate-rank, spoke respectfully to the other side of the screen: "At the location you indicated, there is now only a patch of temporal turbulence. The advance team was caught in it, most crushed by the pressurized time-space. Though a few survivors remain, they are severely wounded, scattered to unknown places."
"Excellent... Has it begun shielding the world coordinates? Your mission is over. Stay where you are and prepare to receive the First Legion."
The entity on the other side of the screen murmured softly, not revealing its true face. A cold laugh could be heard: "Human magic is quite useful—it seems that ancient dragon, or rather, the primordial lifeform, has been startled awake? It hasn't fully recovered, so it needs to buy time."
"But even a primordial lifeform can't hold out that long. Over ten days have passed. By now..."
"At most a week, and it won't be able to hold on any longer."