Badge in Azure

Chapter 1311: Which level of the Abyss? (Part 1)

The lightning puppets remained on the monster. The 500,000 lightning puppets in Saleen's Lightning Constellation were most adept at taking on soul-type beings. However, the equipment totally failed. The level difference was just too great.

The weapon spirit within the Floating Spirit was capable of controlling limitless energy. The bit of lightning on the puppets failed to do any damage worth noting on the weapon spirit.

Saleen summoned his magic amplifier and threw all eight balls of lightning. The eight balls of lightning circled around the weapon spirit and did not attack.

The weapon spirit smirked coldy before closing its eyes, barging out of the eight balls of lightning and continuing to devour the lightning puppets.

The lightning puppets were tangible. As the weapon spirit devoured them, it gradually grew bones and a huge mechanical form appeared before Saleen.

A thought flashed in Saleen's mind. While the weapon spirit was extremely powerful and probably was born intelligent, it had little experience of the world. It wanted a body, so that it could leave the Floating City and venture outside. It wanted freedom.

A chance!

Saleen summoned three lightning puppets behind him in secret, barricading his immediate surroundings with Quickcloud. Lightning flashed, preventing anything from peering inside the mist.

Saleen infused the three broken jade pieces into the lightning puppets' bodies and threw all three onto the weapon spirit.

"You fool!" That weapon spirit somehow learned how to speak the Myers Language. It saw Saleen pounce onto it, and while it was unable to see his physical form, it was able to tell Saleen's precise location.

The pair of eyes blinked and appeared right behind Saleen and swallowed the three lightning puppets, before turning around to face Saleen.

Saleen unleashed a thick bolt of lightning from his family badge. He was really going all out. If the badge hit its target and caused an explosion, the energy that would invoke the weapon spirit to bring its energy to bear would enable the altercation to blow up a small city.

Pff…

A bolt of lightning several meters thick hit the weapon spirit, which looked astonished. It had devoured tens of thousands of lightning puppets, so it did not expect the incoming bolt to be that terrifying.

While it was capable of harming its body, the damage would be akin to a mosquito but: itchy and nothing else.

But the attack actually ended up…

The bolt of lightning unleashed from Saleen's family badge hit the pair of eyes squarely. The weapon spirit's form crumbled. The three pieces of broken jade flew out of the weapon spirit's broken body under Saleen's control, sucking the weapon spirit up in a frenzy.

"Impossible!" The weapon spirit struggled, wanting to pounce onto Saleen.

However, the attraction of the broken jade pieces was of the highest rules. When they began sucking, not even the gods were able to escape them.

The weapon spirit never thought a piece of equipment like that existed in the world. It was divided into three parts, suffering intense pain as its soul was torn apart.

Worse still, the pain would never go away. When the broken jade pieces sucked it in, it was very difficult for it to die, unless Saleen wanted it dead.

This can't be happening!

When Saleen saw the weapon spirit tear into three parts and subjected to his control, he was still thinking about the weapon spirit in his Lightning Constellation.

Without a weapon spirit, it would almost be impossible for him to use the Lightning Constellation to absorb the Lightning Moon in the cemetery of the giant. If he nurtured a new one, he was at a loss of what would fit well in a piece of equipment like the Lightning Constellation.

The other puppets left within the Lightning Constellation were incomparable to the original lightning puppet, in terms of material or level. Saleen would not use them as cannon fodders otherwise.

"Enjoy!" Saleen put the jade pieces away and opened the thirteenth floor of the tower. The lightning attack was nullified by the weapon spirit's body and did not end up causing any catastrophe. It was a good thing, as it meant at least that the magic tower was unharmed.

However, Saleen realized that his family badge was no longer invincible.

It was the first place where a living being taking a direct hit from his family badge and lived. If it had not been for the jade pieces were specifically tailored to sucking soul-like beings, the weapon spirit would still be able to kill him even after it was injured.

Unless he was able to continue to cast lightning bolts and hit it repeatedly, the enemy would not end up completely disintegrated.

Relying on powers of equipment is not the correct path after all! That thought was going on in Saleen's mind when the Ring of Cosmos on his finger shifted, stopping all energy fluctuations around him. It happened for less than a frame, so Saleen did not realize it happening. He felt dejected. He acquired a splintered weapon spirit, but he could only torture it instead of subjugate it.

He also lost the weapon spirit of his Lightning Constellation, which would considerably weaken his equipment. It would be a lot more troublesome to take down the Lightning Moon.

Huge quantities of fluid was stored in an isolated space in the Ring of Cosmos. Saleen would probably go insane if he saw the fluid, because it behaved like isolated, unmoving lightning.

Within that space, liquid existed in a stable state, but even so, the energy emanating from the liquid attempted to reduce everything attempting to enter the space into nothing.

Aqua Fulgur. It was from another crystal wall system altogether, and there was no way Saleen would learn of it. It would be difficult to master it using magic.

One ball of lightning after another was being nurtured within the Aqua Fulgur. The differently colored balls of lightning floated within the Aqua Fulgur. They existed for less than a frame in time, before dissolving into Aqua Fulgur again.

As the Ring of Cosmos got increasingly familiar at mimicking the rules of the crystal wall system, the balls of lightning were able to stay for increasingly long periods of time. Some balls even managed to keep their form after appearing.

Millions of ball lightning floated in that vast space and the number was still climbing.

Saleen walked outside the thirteenth floor of the tower, and concern was written all over Nailisi's face.

"What happened, master?"

"Accident happened. I lost a weapon spirit," Saleen answered concisely.

"You…"

"I'm fine. How are things outside, Nailisi?"

"I'm still summoning demons and have managed to fill all of the nodes of the magic net. The Floating City can carry over 100 thousand enchanters. From here on out, we possess the same strength as Alchemy City, Master."

"So what? If we run into the skeletal dragon, we'll need to run." Saleen found it difficult to let go. He had his family badge, which could almost be the most powerful weapon in the world, but he was unable to keep the Big Guy alive.

The weapon spirit of the Lightning Constellation did not even manage to leave any final words.

It died a meaningless death. A totally meaningless one! If the skeletal dragon came looking for trouble with me, I guess that would be meaningless as well, eh? Saleen did not get to stay dejected for long.

"Saleen!"

"Yeah?"

"We have bad news. A space tear appeared in Metatrin City and abyssal creatures are gushing out from the tear."

"Location!" Saleen tensed up.

"Between Metatrin City and the Broken Blade Pass."

Saleen breathed a sigh of relief. Metatrin City, like Alchemy City, had weaknesses in internal defense. But if the enemy came from outside, it would be extremely difficult to take them on.

"What did my teacher say?"

"He was hoping that you'd head back there once." Sika showed her thoughts of wanting to go back as well. Abyssal creatures were difficult to deal with. The abyssal plane was huge, and there were countless powerful beings.

"Seems like we have to go then." Saleen looked at Alchemy City and felt reluctant. If it had not been for the skeletal dragon, he would have been able to look into the few warehouses that did not have their contents transferred.

His wealth was already vast enough, but he kept feeling that they were short on supplies for the upcoming clash with the other planes.

Lex felt the same. Trade was already in a chaotic state and was no longer what it used to be. Even in Metatrin City, gold would not be able to get much good stuff; they would literally have to barter.

There were two things that Saleen wanted most, food and medicine. Alchemists needed huge quantities of common herbs and minerals for crafting medicines. None of them was expensive, but collecting them was not a breeze.

There was usually little use for such supplies, and the prices were unable to go up. The common supplies were usually bought together with other supplies.

However, Saleen needed huge quantities of them at the moment. Eleanor was around, which enabled him to create a lot of medicines, many of which could save lives on the battlefield. He was pretty much the only supplier on Myers Mainland who had formulas of elvish medicine.

Metatrin City was in trouble and Jason asked Saleen to return. He reluctantly took the Floating City towards Metatrin City.

The skeletal dragon was relieved to find Saleen gone. It really hated being watched by the Floating Heaven, but it had no intention to continue fighting, as it needed to stabilize its powers and familiarize itself with the local rules. The skeletal dragon became much more comfortable with that detestable thing gone.

It howled, and the half-dead throughout Alchemy City howled together with the skeletal dragon, as if they had been the ones to repel the Floating City.

It was mid-winter in October. The north was covered in snow, but the area between Metatrin City and Broken Blade Pass was extremely hot. A stable portal had appeared and flames kept shooting out from within. The abyssal creatures that appeared had invoked the underground fires as well.

The location of Metatrin City had been chosen so that it was impossible for earthquakes and volcanic eruptions to happen, but the abyssal creatures bore through the earth for tens of miles.

The portal was wrapped in a lake of lava. The underside of the lake was connected to ley lines, and underground fires kept shooting upwards, preventing the lake from freezing over.

The only way to solidify the lake was to cut off its connection with the ley line, but only level 13 professionals would be able to barely attempt it. Even level 13 professionals would probably hesitate to go to the ley lines.

Saleen returned to Metatrin City and was called to the temple by his teacher. There were over a dozen level ten mage trainers gathered in the temple. Some of them submitted to Saleen, and there were also Lex's men, as well as some from Sreeger Island.

There were hundreds of level nine sorcerers in the city, but the ones in the temple had all gone through solid and gradual training, instead of relying on shortcuts.

The powerful mages were gathered in the temple, looking into ways to take on the abyssal creatures.