“Yeah,” Ethan said, looking at the insect hovering right in front of his nose. “Is there a problem?”
“Is there a problem?!” The Energy-Eating Insect's voice was shrill and ear-piercing, its six legs flailing wildly in the air. “How old even are you?!”
Ethan thought about it. “Around twenty-three, I think.”
The Energy-Eating Insect's wings stopped buzzing.
The entire bug hovered in midair, completely frozen. The surrounding air fell dead silent for several seconds before its wings began to buzz again, flapping at an even higher frequency than before—so fast they produced a low, dull hum.
It circled Ethan once, then twice, before suddenly stopping right in front of his nose again.
“How old did you just say you were?!”
“Twenty-three.”
The silver runes on the surface of the Energy-Eating Insect's compound eyes lit up completely. Its mouthparts opened and closed, then closed and opened again.
It flew up from his shoulder, hovering in midair with its two front legs folded together. “I get it. You're from a Wizard family, right?”
“No,” Ethan said. “My family is just a minor noble house with a small title.”
The Energy-Eating Insect's compound eyes bulged even wider. “Generally speaking, one only participates in the Wizard Apprentice selection at sixteen, right?”
“Yeah.”
“And you participated at sixteen, right?”
“Yeah.”
“So you've been cultivating for less than seven years?!”
Ethan tilted his head in thought.
From his departure from the Thorn Empire until now, including the time spent in Amons World, it had indeed been about six or seven years at most.
He nodded. “Probably, roughly, maybe, just about, yeah.”
The Energy-Eating Insect fell completely silent. It remained hovering in place, its six legs dangling beneath it, its wings buzzing listlessly. The light in its compound eyes flickered uncertainly.
Ethan glanced at it. “My aptitude is actually pretty average. If I hadn't had to switch to Lord Jade Shadow's meditation method, and if it weren't so difficult to advance while in Amons World, I probably would have advanced last year.”
The moment the words left his mouth, the Energy-Eating Insect suddenly shot backward like a bullet.
It flew over to an ancient roadside tree that would take three men to hug, hugged the trunk with all six legs, and began slamming its forehead against the bark. Thud! Thud! Thud!
After banging its head seven or eight times, it flew back and landed on Ethan's shoulder.
Its six legs tightly gripped his collar, its compound eyes practically pressed against his face.
“Less than seven years! Twenty-three years old! Advancing to an Official Wizard!” Its voice grew shriller with every word. “You call this average aptitude?!”
“It really is average,” Ethan said. “It's just ninety-seven points of innate mental power. A mere Grade Five Aptitude.”
The Energy-Eating Insect flipped upside down in midair, its six legs pointing upward and its wings buzzing frantically like a beetle turned on its back.
It hovered in this position for several seconds before suddenly flipping back over. “Inhale... exhale... inhale... exhale... Ahhhhhhh!!! Ninety-seven points of innate mental power! And you're telling me that's average?!”
“It's alright, I guess. Just decent.”
“Bullshit!” the Energy-Eating Insect shrieked, the surrounding air vibrating slightly with its voice. “I've lived for so many years and seen more Third-Tier Apprentices than you've eaten hot meals! Forget ninety-seven points of innate mental power—even those with over ninety can be counted on one hand! Let alone someone who can break through to an Official Wizard in seven years!”
It circled his head twice more, its six legs rummaging through his hair. “Kid, do you have any idea how absurd what you just said is? Go to the Jade Shadow Forest Academy and ask any random Official Wizard how many years it took them to break through. Thirty years is considered a genius, forty years is excellent, and fifty years is normal!”
The more it spoke, the more agitated it became. Flying down from Ethan's head, it poked his forehead with a front leg. “Do you know that with your current speed, you could rank among the top across all one hundred and eight districts of the Wizard World? And you're telling me your aptitude is average? Do you have some kind of misunderstanding about the word 'average'?”
Ethan reached up and gently pushed the leg away from his forehead. “My lady, if you keep poking my forehead like that, you're going to leave a dent.”
The Energy-Eating Insect retracted its leg and flopped heavily back into his hair.
Its six wings folded flat against its carapace, its two front legs crossed, and its mouthparts tightly shut.
Only after a long while did it speak again, its voice muffled. “What kind of dog shit luck did that old bastard Blood Bone get blessed with?”
Ethan pretended not to hear that.
Why would he, a mere Third-Tier Apprentice, get involved in badmouthing his own Headmaster?
Even though there was only him and the Energy-Eating Insect around, the apprentices of the Jade Shadow Academy were keeping their distance, steering well clear of this area.
Ethan stopped walking. “My lady, which way is the teleportation array? It's time for me to head back.”
The Energy-Eating Insect flew up from his head, its six wings buzzing as it drifted toward the left. “This way. Keep up.”
The stone path stretched out beneath their feet, the trees on either side growing sparser.
After walking for about two and a half hours, a circular plaza appeared ahead.
The runic array in the center of the plaza was identical to the one they had arrived through. Twelve stone pillars formed a circle, the vines and leaves clinging to them gleaming emerald-green under the sunlight.
“We're here.” The Energy-Eating Insect flew up and pointed a front leg toward the center of the array. “Step on up and state your destination. This teleportation array connects to the entirety of District 77. As long as you have the coordinates, you can go anywhere.”
Ethan stepped onto the stone slab at the center of the array.
The runic patterns beneath his feet lit up in sequence from the outer edges toward the center, an emerald-green glow flowing through the lines.
The pale gold light orbs at the tops of the twelve stone pillars lit up simultaneously, weaving together into a massive web of light directly above the array.
“Destination: Blood Bone Tower Academy.”
A second later, an ethereal voice rang out: “Destination confirmed. Teleportation request sent.”
Another second passed. “Teleportation request approved. Teleportation is ready. Initiate now?”
“Confirm.”
The moment the word left his lips, all the runic patterns beneath his feet blazed to life.
An emerald-green light welled up from the center of the array, spreading outward along the runes.
The surrounding air began to vibrate, and the web of light descended from above, enveloping him completely.
The Energy-Eating Insect hovered outside the array, its compound eyes fixed on the figure growing increasingly blurry within the light.
The light suddenly flared to its absolute limit.
Ethan's figure distorted, folded, and vanished into the light.
The array returned to tranquility. The light orbs atop the stone pillars dimmed once more, and the glow of the runic patterns slowly faded away.
The Energy-Eating Insect hovered in midair, its six wings buzzing listlessly. It stared at the empty center of the array, the light in its compound eyes flickering.
After several seconds, it suddenly spoke.
“Sister Tower Spirit.”
A pale green projection materialized in the air. The Tower Spirit appeared out of thin air at the edge of the array, hovering half a foot off the ground, her pale green silhouette rippling slightly in the sunlight.
“Yes?”
“I want to find a student for Master.” The Energy-Eating Insect's voice grew much more serious, its six legs paddling gently beneath its body.
The Tower Spirit's voice remained cold and detached. “Oh?”
“I want to find a student for Master,” the Energy-Eating Insect repeated.
The Tower Spirit's projection rippled slightly. She didn't say anything, simply hovering in midair as if waiting for something.
Rate on N.U.
