He walked to the edge of thescorched crater, leaned forward, and looked down. There, he saw atwisted, blood-soaked corpse, a sight so gruesome it was almost unbearable. The corpse'scontorted face, frozen in an expression offear and despair, revealed the unimaginable torment he had endured before his death.
But Mo Fan remainedexpressionless. He felt nosympathyin fact, he even thoughtthis wasn't enough. After all,he hadn't been the one to personally finish him off.
Lu Jun had never forgotten thegrudgehe held against Lu Nian from back in Magic City, and like Mo Fan, he lived by the rule ofnever forgetting a grudge. Lu Nian'srighteous justificationshad always beendisgusting, especially since hesacrificed othersfor the sake of his own research using them as meretest subjects.
"This old dog got off easy."
Mo Fanspat on the ground, then turned to Lu Jun and asked, "By the way, what exactly is BloodDemon Relic?"
Lu Junsmirked mysteriously, picked up one of theBlood Relics, and casually tossed it to Mo Fan. "Lu Nian deserved to die," he explained, "but hisDemonic Elementcan be fully realized throughyou."
Mo Fan, caught off guard,fumbled to catch the Blood Relic, and upon hearing Lu Jun's words, he almostthrew it awayin shock.
"What the hell?!Old Lu, you're not planning to use me as an experiment, are you?!"
"Listen to me first," Lu Jun said, shaking his head. "TheDemonic Elementhas always required anenormousamount of mana—far beyond what any mage of the same level can provide. AMid-tiermage would need more thantwo entire Nebulas, while aHigh-tiermage would need more thanthree Star Rivers. That's why no one has ever been able to sustain it."
"But you... you're born withdual elements. YourMid-tiermagic hasfour Nebulas, and yourHigh-tiermagic hassix full Star Rivers. You havemore than enoughto sustain the Blood Relic. It's theperfect matchfor your magic."
Hearing Lu Jun'spersuasive tone, Mo Fan felta chillrun down his spine. He quicklywaved his hands. "Forget it! I'm not interested. I believe I can grow strongeron my own, without relying on this power."
Lu Jun chuckled, his words carrying a deeper meaning. "You're right.But having it as a trump card wouldn't hurt, would it?When the time comes, if you're ever pushed to thebrink of death, you could use it like aHeavenly Demon Disintegration Technique."
Mo Fan had been ready tothrow the Demon Relic away, but after hearing this, hehesitatedthen obedientlyput it away.
"That's true," he thought to himself. "I'mhandsomeandstrong, and a lot of people envy me. Having an extra trump card is always a good idea."
Lu Jun then proceeded to explain thetaboosof the Demonic Element: "Once youtransform, all your magic levels willdrop by one tier, and you'll suffer fromsoul backlash."
"But," he added, "if youstockpile enough Demon Essences in advance, you caneasilycounteract the backlash."
The more Mo Fan listened, the moretemptingit sounded. He suddenly realized thisdownsidewasn't as bad as he had imagined! He had thought the transformation would turn him into amindless monster, but it wasactually manageable.
"Wait a minute... myLittle Loachcan collect Demon Essenceseffortlessly!"
Seeing Mo Fandeep in thought, Lu Jun added one last crucial piece of advice: "When you reachHigh-tieror evenSuper-tier,don't rushto awaken anew element. TheDemonic Elementshould be yourtop priority. It will beinvaluableto you in the future."
"Alright, I don't know if I'll ever use the Demon Relic," Mo Fan muttered, "but I'll keep it for now."
Though he still had some doubts, he agreed tohold onto it.
Lu Jun said nothing more. He wascertainthat Mo Fan wouldeventuallyuse it.
Even if he resisted atHigh-tier, he'd have no choice when he reachedSuper-tier.
After all,without the Demonic Element, how could he havesaved Zhang Xiaohou in the Ancient Capital? How could he haverescued Xinxia in the Parthenon Templeafter the National Institute Battle?
Without the Demonic Element,Mo Fan wouldn't survive.
It wasdestinedthat he would take this path.
At the moment, aside from obtaining theDemon RelicforCurse Magic research, Lu Jun had onlylimitedMo Fan'searly usageof it.
After all, it would be awasteto unlock theDemonic Elementjust to killLu Nian, a merenobody. Losing half a year of training and dropping a magic tier for that?Too big of a loss.
In the original timeline, Mo Fan hadDemonizedinDongting Lakeand had tospend four months recovering. Then hetrained for two more monthsjust to regain his former strength. His entiresecond semester of freshman yearhad beenwasted.
Lu Jun reasoned thathalf a yearwas more than enough for Mo Fan, with hisdual-element advantage, tohunt demons and gather enough Star River Vain. He should at least reachHigh-tierbefore heading to theAncient Capital.
The original Mo Fan'sgrowth trajectory was far from perfect.
If he hadn't beenheld back by the Demonic Element, and if he hadavoided getting involved in so many major events, then perhaps by the time theHoly Citytargeted him, he would have alreadybroken through to Forbidden Curse-tier.
Lu Junput away the remaining Demon Relicsandstopped paying attentionto Mo Fan.
His real objective had always beenLu Nian's Demon Relic.
Mo Fan'stimelinehad simply beencollateral damagebut since he couldmanipulate events, why not take advantage of the situation?
A Commander-level Vampire's Blood Source combined with a Demon Relic...
This would surely allow him to craft an exceptional Curse Material.
Now, everything was prepared only one piece remained.
He still needed to advance his Curse Element to High-tier, which required gathering a Star River Vain.
He had about 50 to 60 million on hand but still needed to hunt many more monsters.
Coincidentally, Lu Jun looked toward the battlefield in the city center.
Between the towering skyscrapers, thunderous explosions rang out continuously.
Brilliant streaks of High-tier magic illuminated the battlefield. With every strike, hundreds of Earth Lizard Beasts were crushed into pulp.
Meanwhile, Lu Mei and Zhan Kong, two powerful High-tier Wind Mages, were engaged in aerial combat against a Commander-level Pseudo Dragon.
Mo Fan also witnessed this scene.
The overwhelming tide of lizards surged forward, yet the four High-tier mages held the line, preventing them from advancing.
It was a sight that left him deeply shaken.
Lu Jun turned to Mo Fan, smirking mysteriously.
"A single tribe isn't something a Mid-tier mage can handle. You should leave Jinlin Wild City for now."
"Remember to capture Lu Zhenghe alive on your way out. He'll serve as evidence of Lu Nian's crimes. I have a use for him. When the time comes... hehe... The Imperial Capital Academy, which oversaw this training exercise, will have to take responsibility for this mess."
Mo Fan's eyes lit up, like a cat that had just stolen a fish, and he grinned slyly.
"Ohhh, I see—we're gonna extort the Imperial Capital!"
"A fat compensation payout for mental distress... and property damage... Oh, and let's not forget the military should pay up too!"
The two of them were cut from the same cloth, both dual-element mages, both always broke, and both experts at squeezing money out of every opportunity.
They nodded in agreement, sealing the deal.
A moment later, Mo Fan vanished into the shadows, using Shadow Escape to leave the battlefield.
Lu Jun fixed his gaze on the battlefield ahead.
He summoned his Night Thunder Dream Beast, preparing to join the battle.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
He drew his Black-Gold Dragon Pattern Sword.
A three-foot blade flickered in the wind, expanding rapidly transforming into a colossal saber over ten meters long.
He stepped onto it, and with a whoosh, he soared through the sky, flying toward the mountainous nest of the Giant Lizard Horde.
From midair, Lu Jun looked down at the battlefield below.
Over ten thousand Earth Lizard Beasts surged forward, their dark swarm-like mass resembling a rolling tide of darkness.
When humans number over ten thousand, it's a crowd.
When monsters number over ten thousand, it's an unstoppable calamity.
Each tribe typically had about fifty nests, and even after discounting the weak and elderly, there were still at least 2,500 active warriors.
But a Commander-level Pseudo Dragon had far greater influence than ordinary White Sturgeon Demons or Vampires.
Its call had rallied over ten thousand monsters.
That was the real challenge in hunting Commanders and Monarchs one had to eliminate their minions before striking at the heart of the beast.
He caught a glimpse of his Night Thunder Dream Beast, its form melting into shadows, creeping along the rocky cliffs toward the False Dragon's lair.
Upon reaching the nest, its Nightmare Domain expanded, locking into a deadly stare-off with the massive, dozens-of-meters-long Pseudo Dragon.
"A large horde, huh?"
"A Water Mage like me isn't afraid of numbers."
Lu Jun's aura flared powerfully.
A surge of water vapor erupted from his body, soaring into the sky.
Serpentine Water Silk Flood Dragons coiled around him, their scales glistening with an ethereal crystalline glow.
Above his head, a brilliant azure pearl hovered, casting its radiance over the entire battlefield, sending countless misty tendrils cascading down like flowing silk.
At some point, the sword beneath his feet had vanished.
In its place was a raging azure river, sweeping across the battlefield like a heavenly torrent.