Age of Adepts

This place was an empty and desolate area in the depths of space.

The stars flickered in the distant darkness, each bright star representing a healthy and intact planar world. The tremendous distance made them look like tiny little spots of light in the endless night.

For someone who had only just stepped out of their homeworld for the first time, these flickering stars might seem within their reach. It was almost as if all they had to do was reach forward, and the stars would be in their grasp. It was no more than an illusion.

Even the closest star was hundreds of billions of kilometers away. If anyone attempted to approach these stars, charmed by their beauty, they would soon realize to their horror that they would never contact these stars, even if they were to fly for several decades without stopping.

So close yet so far…the vastness and greatness of space were not easily comprehended!

Space wasn't empty.

While most of space appeared utterly devoid of anything, that couldn't be farther from the truth. Only people who had experienced space for themselves would understand why space wasn't 'empty.' Space wasn't an empty void. Rather, all of that space was filled with rising and falling energy tides. These tides of energy gathered at times and scattered at others, forming a tumultuous and majestic sea of energy all over the universe.

Ordinary plane creatures were not qualified to witness or appreciate the scenery of these energy tides!

Ordinary substance unprotected by any form of energy would be disintegrated by the energy tides, as they continuously eroded and wore away at everything around them. All materials were ground into imperceptibly tiny elementium particles that were then scattered into space and assimilated as part of the energy tides.

At this moment, a massive rock about a hundred square meters in width was tumbling through space. The rock's surface clashed with the ubiquitous energy tides, causing sparks to appear as it did so.

The roaring energy tides were like ferocious beasts, constantly chipping away at the rock. Occasionally, black dust would fall away from the rock and be cast away into the depths of space.

Without incident, this fragment of a continent from a broken plane would be completely devoured by the spacestorms in three to five years. Not a single piece of it would be left by then.

However, it was a shelter for certain unusual beings at the moment.

Shrouded in a faint veil of white death energy, Lich Kanganas stood silently on a more level spot on the rock. A small array flickered beneath his feet, about five square meters in size.

The array was transmitting a subtle but unusual fluctuation into the distance.

Kanganas had been waiting here for a year already. Judging from his behavior, he could continue waiting forever.

Of course, he wasn't waiting in vain!

Finally, as the energy tides trembled slightly, a small point of light approached from the endless darkness, slowly approaching this landing spot in the depths of space.

A short moment later, the sparks and fires caused by the rock's collision with the energy tides parted, and an unusually large and powerful creature entered.

It was an unusual creature resembling a scorpion. He was about five meters long, and the surface of his body was covered in a hard, golden shell.

This scorpion-like being had three segments to his body.

The middle portion was the longest, with four pairs of sharp limbs reaching out from the sides. The front segment was his head, short and agile, with two terrifying pairs of pincers reaching out from either side. Lastly, the back of its body was a fearsome stinger with clearly defined segments. The last half-meter of the stinger was pitch-black and gave off a pungent, bitter smell.

An earth-yellow barrier engulfed him as he approached, protecting him from the constant erosion of the energy tides.

This strange scorpion glared at Kanganas with his green compound eyes the moment he arrived. The lich didn't seem surprised by the scorpion's arrival. Instead, he started conversing in an indolent tone.

"Sand King, you are early! The rest of them haven't arrived yet. Why don't you take a breather!"

"Kanganas, I hope the guests you've invited are capable people. Otherwise…it's not going to be easy to deal with that ice dragon!" 'Sand King' replied in kind with a mental message.

"Don't worry. Everyone invited this time is a powerful individual selected with much care and attention. There won't be any incidents." Lich Kanganas' soulfire was incredibly concentrated. They appeared as two golden crosses projected from his two ruby eyes. His Spirit was shockingly powerful.

That was only natural. As the one who initiated this mission, he had to possess sufficient authority and power to be able to command his team members.

The scorpion fell silent after hearing the lich's assurance. He walked to a corner of the rock, crouched on the hard ground, and closed his eyes to rest.

Anyone who could make it through the vast distances of space through those ferocious spacestorms to arrive here was no weakling. Even this seemingly insignificant scorpion radiated powerful Fourth Grade energies. With how robust his body was and hard his shell was, he would not have expended much energy in getting here.

However, there was simply nothing here, not even a temporary resting spot. There was really nothing he could do but close his eyes and rest as he waited!

The scorpion's arrival seemed to herald the start of something. For the next six months, two more powerful individuals arrived in the same fashion. They also exchanged a few words with the lich before finding a spot to rest.

At this point, the tiny rock of no more than a hundred square meters in surface area was carrying as many as four powerful individuals from different planes. They each took up a corner and waited in silence. Occasionally, they would talk with each other. No one seemed to mind the wait.

Finally, after two more months and no more newcomers, Sand King couldn't help but speak up.

"Kanganas, is the person you called for still coming? If no one else is coming, then we should start discussing our plans, should we not?"

"Don't be in a hurry. That fellow's definitely coming! Moreover, his powers are very helpful for our operation this time. So……"

"Hmph! Big man, is he? To think he would let me wait for this long. I can't wait to see what important person is coming to meet us!"

"Hehehe. Look, speak of the devil; he's come!"

As Kanganas' mental message echoed in this cramped space, a blinding flash of fire ignited in the distant space. Loud explosions could be heard as the flames flickered and approached rapidly.

In the blink of an eye, a pillar of fire erupted at the center of the rock. The silhouette of a two-meter-tall humanoid could be seen in the center of the eruption. A short moment later, the fires dissipated, and the four individuals could finally see the newcomer's appearance.

It was a human!

The newcomer wore an unusual set of black dragon leather armor. A dark red cape was draped over his shoulders, the hood obscuring most of his face, only revealing a white chin and two crimson strands of hair.

He was only two meters tall and neither too fat nor too skinny.

His height would have made him a giant amidst humans, but here in this strange gathering of creatures, he was the smallest of them all.

Even Lich Kanganas stood at three meters tall. The rest of the Fourth Grades were also hulking individuals with tremendous size.

The human adept held a red staff in his hand, an ordinary magical jewel embedded at the top of the staff. A thick tome was bound to his waist with silver chains. Judging from its sharp mithril spine, it could easily double as a blunt weapon.

The newcomer looked unusually young and handsome. However, everyone present here was a veteran that had lived for hundreds of years. No one would assume that this human was a rookie just because of his appearance.

Lich Kanganas performed a quick sweep of the human adept with his crimson soulfire when he saw him arrive. When his 'gaze' landed on the thick tome, his soulfire shrank abruptly as his Spirit trembled.

Was that the Libram of Wisdom?

But the aura didn't match! Could this fire adept have a second powerful magical tome equipment in his possession?

The abilities and equipment of any individual were part of their power. They would not allow another individual to scry and peer into their secrets freely. That was why Kanganas did not make any further inquiries, as curious as he was. He simply walked forward to welcome the adept, as if he couldn't be bothered by what he saw.

"You've finally arrived!"

Naturally, the young human adept was Greem, who had hurried here after receiving the message. Among all these powerhouses, he was only acquainted with Lich Kanganas. Thus, he smiled at the lich as he said, "My plane is slightly further away from this place. It took me some time to get here."

"All that matters is that you're here. That's all that matters. Time? Hah! What does that count for in the eyes of individuals like ourselves?!"

Kanganas secretly started to examine the energy aura that Greem radiated, even as he continued to make small talk.

Unbelievable! It had barely been a hundred years, and this fire adept he had barely paid any attention to back then had advanced to intermediate Fourth Grade!

Such a terrifying speed of improvement! Even Kanganas, with all his knowledge and experience, couldn't help but be shocked seeing this.

Upon seeing the lich's passionate greeting, the other three individuals couldn't help but exchange looks. They then shifted their gaze onto the newcomer.

"Late guy, I am Sand King; what's your name?" Sand King, who had always been known for his fiery temper, couldn't help but be the first to speak up.

Sand King was only his title. No one really knew or cared about the scorpion's actual name.

After all, everyone was only here for a mission. They barely trusted each other. There was no way they would share secrets about themselves.