Chapter Forty-One: Outside Blackstone City

Summon Fire Element

Rank: Fifth-Tier Summoning
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: 30 meters
Components: Incantation, gestures, materials (sulfur and phosphorus powder)
Duration: 1 hour
Effect: When cast at a location filled with flames (such as a campfire), this spell summons a fire elemental servant. The creature disappears when its hit points reach zero or when the spell ends.

Description: The power of the summoned fire elemental depends on the amount of mental energy consumed, with its level not exceeding the caster’s intelligence attribute and capped at level 50. The spell’s volatility is considerable depending on the energy expended—even someone at first-tier strength like Chu Yun can use it. If the spell is enhanced through twisted laws, the elemental’s level limit can be broken or multiple fire elementals can be summoned at once. The main drawback is the lengthy casting time of one minute. Currently, Chu Yun cannot allow other living beings into the Mirror World, and while the fire elemental is a special lifeform, it too cannot enter.

However, this is a minor issue; as long as there is a fire in the real world, he can simply open a small portal from the Mirror World and cast the spell remotely, which is even safer. With his current intelligence of 21 points, Chu Yun can summon a level 21 fire elemental—roughly third-tier entry level—for combat. As his attributes increase, this spell will grow much stronger.

Summoning a level 21 fire elemental consumes 21 points of mental energy, and if his remaining energy is insufficient after summoning, he may lose control of the elemental, leading to unpredictable consequences. Chu Yun’s mental energy is sufficient for now, but lacking sulfur and phosphorus powder, he cannot experiment yet and must wait to return to the order to purchase materials from merchants.

As this thought crossed his mind, Chu Yun’s gaze shifted toward Captain Hager, who had intended to shift the blame onto the order. Although his actions were understandable, they were difficult to accept. Hager, having lost the godshard, had plunged into the water in a frenzy to search, but found nothing. Instead, he was attacked again by the Blackwater Python.

Seeing this, Matthew—usually unflappable—finally showed some anxiety, hurrying to the lakeside to assist Hager with magic in the search for the godshard. In the end, they found nothing at all. Even the monsters that had planned to return to Blackwater Lake to protect the shard dispersed under their bewildered gazes.

“What happened? Was the godshard destroyed? And where did that spell just now come from?” Hager was utterly confused, unable to make sense of the events. Even the experienced Matthew was helpless in the face of malice from the Mirror World. Monsters were the best guides to the godshard, and since they no longer approached, the shard must have vanished.

Hager glared at Matthew, demanding, “Was this your doing?”
Matthew, accused, was somewhat exasperated. “I was helping you kill monsters just now; why blame me?”
“Hmph, you planned all this, didn’t you?”
“That box was suspicious. Maybe you set up the spell while I was in the water and that’s why the attack suddenly veered toward the box!” For once, Hager seemed shrewd.

In fact, he had been suspicious of Matthew from the beginning. After all, that was a godshard—why would Matthew so generously let him try first? But as long as the shard was in his hands, he had the upper hand. As for Matthew’s claim that he could have the shard if Hager couldn’t absorb it, that was utter nonsense. Even if he couldn’t absorb it himself, he had no intention of handing it over. It was a godshard!

With Hager’s spear pointed at him, Matthew found himself at a loss for words.

“So, where did you hide the shard? Is it some kind of spatial magic?” Hager pressed on.

Matthew sighed heavily. “If I could use spatial magic, I’d have just taken the thing and not wasted my time here. I don’t know what caused that last attack, but my guess is there’s another powerful mage nearby pulling strings. As for the godshard, although it wasn’t destroyed when struck, perhaps it shattered completely when it fell into the water.” He could only offer a forced explanation.

Hager was clearly unsatisfied, and tensions rose between them. Fortunately, they didn’t come to blows in the end. Partly because Hager was ill-equipped and not at his best, and partly out of concern that if they fought, any hidden enemy would profit. Even if there was no enemy, monsters still lingered nearby.

Chu Yun paid these two no further mind. After collecting the experience points left behind by the rain of fire, he returned early to the order’s carriage. Rain of Fire truly was a third-tier spell—even though most monsters tried to flee, he still managed to slay many, gaining over three hundred experience points in one fell swoop.

Everything at the order’s campsite was normal. Since the godshard had already been absorbed, Chu Yun attracted no further monsters. Outwardly and by elemental senses, he appeared entirely ordinary. No one knew he had secretly saved their lives from the unscrupulous captain’s hands.

Chu Yun disembarked to seek out merchants for spellcasting materials, but most merchants didn’t transport such goods; only the magic shops in Blackstone City carried them. He wasn’t troubled by this—there wasn’t much distance to Blackstone City left, and there would be no chance to experiment on the road anyway. Returning to the carriage, he began meditating to restore his mental energy.

Roughly ten minutes later, Captain Hager and Vice Captain Matthew returned to the order, looking somewhat bedraggled. They cast suspicious glances at the merchant caravan, but after questioning the knights and learning that no one had left, they could only return empty-handed.

On the journey that followed, Hager’s mood grew increasingly grim; even when encountering first-tier monsters, he slew them all in anger. The heavy loss of magical items and the death of his personal guards left him furious and regretful—perhaps he truly shouldn’t have abandoned his duties to listen to Matthew’s temptations. He vowed that next time, he would hold fast to his creed and resist temptation.

Under Hager’s furious assault, the party’s speed increased, and they no longer paused. Once they exited the Blackstone Forest, the order galloped away, leaving the rest of the merchants and adventurers behind.

But merely leaving Blackstone Forest was enough; the remaining journey was far less dangerous.

Chu Yun continued onward with the main group. This slowed him somewhat, but the journey was peaceful. He practiced constructing the spell model for summoning fire elementals and read through the books and newspapers he’d previously purchased to further his understanding of this world.

By noon the next day, the mighty caravan finally reached the outskirts of Blackstone City. From a distance, they could see the city’s towering walls and—lines of people stretching hundreds of meters.

“What’s going on? Usually the queues aren’t this long, are they?” The crowd was puzzled.