Badge in Azure

Chapter 214: Lightning and Thunder (Part 1)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

A focused impact was a fatal move and both parties would suffer casualties as a result of it. Any small mistake would prove to be fatal. Saleen had top-notch focus, and yet he only dared to control puppets at most. Using it to attack an enemy would be the same as betting with his life.

The magic beast had been fatally injured in its brain and could not care less about anything else. Saleen took out his clan badge without hesitation and released a level-0 spell within the excruciating pain.

The focus of the giant octopus had already locked onto everyone and Saleen felt as if a saw had pierced through his brains and was twisting repeatedly. If he had not gotten used to such a negative state of mind when he had been training, he would have lost consciousness already.

Saleen's focus was quickly absorbed within the clan badge, and this time, it connected with the giant octopus. The lightning symbol within the badge could not contain the azure light any longer and started absorbing things furiously.

Outside of the whirlpool that the octopus had created, another mini whirlpool had formed, and within the center of it was the mysterious badge that Saleen was holding in his hand. The badge directly sucked in the octopus' focus and the water elements, and within the lightning symbol, the azure light could not be contained and was released.

With the exception of Nailisi, the others had fainted from the focused impact that had come from the octopus. Daniel's skeleton puppet was not a living thing and did not have much focus. It was dragging Daniel along in a daze, not knowing what to do. Nailisi dragged Sika with one hand and Lex in the other, following behind Saleen nervously.

She was afraid of the badge. Every time Saleen used it, she had to suffer along with him. However, Nailisi luckily had many years of training and her focus was incredibly dense. Hence, she did not lose consciousness.

Lex's focus was greater than Saleen's and her technique in using it was superior to Saleen's as well. However, her focus was nowhere near as concentrated as Saleen's. Saleen had been training with his clan badge for six years and had never stopped using it even once. Each time the clan badge absorbed Saleen's focus, it had made his focus even denser. After six years, even Saleen was not sure what changes had been made to his focus.

For all spells that were dangerous to other mages, Saleen seemed to be able to complete them with ease. While other mages still felt troubled over meditation, Saleen merely needed to recollect his magic chords.

Without magic chords, it did not matter how strong his focus was, for he would only be able to move around some weak elemental energy and release a level-0 spell. Without his focus, his magic could not be completed, and if it was weak, he would not be able to control his magic.

The giant octopus started panicking. It was unsure what was happening. Its eight tentacles were as soft as noodles and it could no longer control them. Its focus and the power in its magic nuclei had been sucked away by the whirlpool and it suddenly spat out a large amount of water, attempting to escape.

Saleen felt the clan badge in his hand tremble as a blueish-white light shot out. It was a lightning bolt which went straight for the skull of the giant octopus.

The silent attack left a gaping hole in the head of the octopus. No blood spilled out as an eerie, crystal-like material formed at the wound where the lightning had struck, almost as shiny as a gemstone.

Saleen was shocked this time. He had not expected the badge to be able to release an attack. Furthermore, this attack had taken on the form of a lightning bolt!

He had never heard of a mage who had been able to release lightning. During stormy weather, even mages did not dare to fly in the sky, and even sorcerers had to be careful. Lightning was the most ominous power in this dimension, and its speed surpassed that of any other magic. Saleen stood within the water shield and stopped moving about in the sea, trying to recall the changes that had occurred within the badge earlier.

The octopus' body sunk down into the sea and Nailisi started grinding her teeth in anxiety. The magic nuclei within the octopus' body had not been dug out and its skin was a good material as well. The most expensive parts of the octopus were its ink glands. They were the best ingredients possible for writing scrolls and drawing magic arrays.

However, she could not let go of Sika or Lex, and she did not dare disturb Saleen either. Deep within her soul, she could feel the shock that Saleen was facing in that moment. Her master was deep in thought about something serious, and if she were to disrupt him now, the results would be disastrous. Nailisi pulled the two of them along and paddled against the water under her feet, bringing the top half of her body above the surface of the sea. Under the moonlight, her long hair glistened with water droplets and stuck to her body, making her appear almost like a statue of the goddess.

Saleen did not move at all and the badge trembled again. A rumbling noise of thunder sounded and an even thicker bolt of lightning shot out and went straight deeper into the sea.

Saleen was excited this time. He had caught the changes within the badge. The enormous amount of water elements had rubbed and knocked against each other within the badge before revolving systematically. Between the water elements, a secret energy had been separated and come together, one hundred times more vigorous than fire elements.

Is this the power of lightning?

Boom!

The sound of thunder within the badge was enough to deafen someone, and as a third bolt of lightning shot out, the intense energy dissipated along with the decrease in water elements.

Nailisi ducked her head down. This energy that her master had released was something that she had seen before. After she had been captured and brought to this dimension, she had felt an energy similar to this, which was even stronger than lightning.

"Oh…" Saleen groaned. He had dug deeper into the changes within the badge and had forced his focus to go even further. Each time he had gone further into the badge, his focus was completely wiped out by the energy within the badge. Before this, half of his focus had been remaining, but now it was all used up.

His body lay limply within the giant bubble, and the only thing he could do was forcefully hold the clan badge away from him with his left hand.

"Nailisi…" Saleen called out in exhaustion. He did not want to say another word. His focus had been completely wiped clean by the clan badge and the focused impact that had struck him earlier was coming into effect only now. His head was hurting so much that he wanted to knock something against it to relieve the pain.

"I'm here." Nailisi paddled in the water and came to Saleen's side. She laughed strangely as she felt for something on Lex's hand and brought out a small bottle. Inside was magic liquid, and she slyly revealed her tail to bind Lex and Sika together in order to prevent them from sinking even further. She then used her hand to pierce through Saleen's water shield as she poured the magic liquid into Saleen's mouth.

Saleen looked at her in shock. Too many things that he could not understand had happened today. Nailisi had managed to take something out of Lex's spatial equipment.

Spatial equipment was branded with the focus of its owner and was even harder to crack open than a magic lock unless a person's focus was one hundred times greater than that of the user. If not, it would not open. Even if a person forcefully opened it, it would destroy the items stored within. Nailisi's abilities were too terrifying!

However, Saleen did not bother asking about it as he forced himself to meditate, hoping to repair any damage to his brain as soon as possible. The secrets within the clan badge had left him in awe. With something as terrifying as that, how could his family have gone into decline? The three lightning bolts had gotten stronger one by one, and he was sure that the last bolt of lightning had been as powerful as a grade-9 sorcerer using all of their energy at once.

It was a pity that the rate at which the badge gathered its energy was too slow. He had poured six years of magic chords and focus into it, together with the many times that he had absorbed the energy of his enemies and the powerful magic array that he had absorbed in Raphael's magic tower before it had been able to reach this level of power.

The effort and conditions needed to release the power were even more strict than those of the god's ring. Could this weapon even be stronger than a weapon of god?

Saleen quickly entered a meditative state and Nailisi brought out a long rope from her bracelet and tied Sika and Lex together at their waists. She held onto Saleen's belt and kicked her feet in the water, not knowing what to do. Daniel's skeleton puppet was dragging its owner along as well, floating on the surface of the sea.

After using the badge, Saleen only needed less than thirty minutes to meditate, much quicker than usual. He quickly woke up and took a look at his injuries. Sis focus seemed to have been restored. None of the problems that he had expected were present, but his focus seemed to have weakened. It seemed that the frequency of the vibrations within his focus and the vibrations of the energy within the badge had grown more similar.

"Nailisi, let go." Saleen released a water shield and floated back onto the surface of the sea. There were plenty of strange magic beasts in the water, and even though Saleen was not afraid of water, he needed to protect himself.

"Master…"

"Do not let anyone else know of what you have seen," Saleen said sternly. His badge was incredibly ominous and it worried him. If people were to find out about it, it would stir up more attention than a weapon of god. A weapon of god was something that only a grade-8 mage and above could use, and this badge must not have had any grade restrictions.

It was a pity that it could not be controlled. If he had been able to hold back the two other attacks, he would have been able to possess two level-9 spells.

"Not even Lex?" Nailisi asked innocently. She had rarely displayed such an expression recently, and once she did that, Saleen knew what she was thinking.

"No one. Unless…unless I have mastered this power. If not, we will be in trouble."

Nailisi stuck out her tongue and kept silent.

"Saleen!" Sika suddenly woke up and realized that she was strapped at her waist. In shock, she realized what had happened.

Saleen had not expected Sika to wake up first. He had thought that Lex would have recovered faster. It seemed like Sika's holy priest abilities were special and her focus was similar to his.

Saleen furrowed his brows and said, "Nailisi, put that away."

Nailisi reluctantly returned the bottle of magic liquid into Lex's ring as Saleen released a Chunlin spell on her before using another on Sika. As for Daniel, he still needed to sleep a while longer. Having one's focus impacted was a more serious issue for a death mage, and the best thing for him to do was to sleep until he woke up.

Nailisi hid her tail as Lex opened her eyes and realized that she was still alive.

"Saleen…"

"The magic beast has been killed by me. Are you alright?" Saleen said naturally, forcing Lex to swallow down what she had wanted to say. She did not know how Saleen had done such a thing. Under such an intense focused impact, even a grade-6 mage like her had not been able to hold out. Saleen not only seemed alright, but he had managed to kill the octopus as well.