Elite Mages' Academy

Xiao Lin was in an enclosed space that looked like a cave when he opened his eyes, his head heavy. Lilith seemed to have woken up at the same time as him, and was looking at their surroundings with alarm.

“Are we inside the sword?” Lilith said in disbelief.

“Does that mean we’re no longer in Planet Norma? Just like The Final Lands?” Xiao Lin said bitterly. Being sucked into the sword was actually a familiar feeling, and upon further thought, it was similar to when they were transported during the examinations.

“That sword is at least Epic, no, Legend-ranked,” Lilith said with a complicated look on her face.

“How so?”

“Ah, even though every weapon is unique, they share similarities. For instance, weapons that have their own domain are all at least Epic-ranked. Considering the surroundings, it’s definitely Legend rank!” Lilith half-guessed as she talked to herself, but her last words were fairly confident.

There actually was a Legend-rank sword under the lake!

If the news spread out, half of Planet Norma could rush over. Legend-ranked weapons were not something that could be easily forged. It needed extreme talent and also materials that were exceedingly rare, on top of a stroke of luck, or it would never succeed. In all of Planet Norma, even including the academies, Legend-ranked weapons and armor were very rare.

However, Xiao Lin recalled something, and was the slightest bit excited about seeing such a weapon for the first time. Then, his expression worsened.

He vividly remembered what the woman said when she sent them in. They were obviously not the first group of people here. Thinking about the legend of Red Beard’s treasure, it was obvious that there were countless people who had tried to find it.

If they had also met the woman and were forcefully sent into the sword’s private domain, then why had there not been any news about it on Planet Norma. News about weapons of this rank were something that could not be suppressed.

The only possibility was that everyone that had come inside had never left. If that were the case, then how did the legend ever spread?

Xiao Lin and Lilith exchanged a glance, revealing their own shocked expressions. The only possibility was the so-called legend had been spread by Red Beard to attract more people.

If they thought about it more, the hostages had told them that Red Beard said all his accomplishments were from something he had obtained in the lake. It was possible that he had discovered the woman first and formed some sort of deal with her.

“What is she out to gain?” Xiao Lin asked in confusion. The woman was definitely not after Red Beard’s treasure sending so many people, including them, here.

“I feel like the sword might be what is keeping her here, and she wants us to release her spirit. Other than that, I can’t think of any other reason.” Lilith had a better understanding of weapons, and made that conclusion.

“That girl, ah no, that old granny is at least tens of thousands of years old. Is it really wise to release her?” Xiao Lin could not help but think of Asabanor. That old fart had only spent a few hundred years in The Final Lands before being twisted by revenge, causing so much trouble for Xiao Lin and the academies.

Now, it was an old lady several millennia old. Xiao Lin got a headache just thinking about it.

“Do we have a choice?” Lilith said unhappily.

It was true; just as she said, they had no choice but to move forward.

Xiao Lin started to shift his focus to their surroundings. It was an empty cave, possibly completely sealed off. There were no lights or any sunlight, but the cave was filled with strange rays, causing it to look like daytime inside.

The two of them walked around the area, but could not find any exits. It really was a completely sealed-off space. Xiao Lin stared into space, wondering what the woman wanted them to do here.

As he was thinking, two pillars of light suddenly shone in the middle of the cave. The two of them were immediately on high alert, but Xiao Lin felt a strange familiarity to the pillars of light. The light started to rapidly condense and take shape, slowly forming a humanoid figure.

“My god! Is there a virtual battle system here? Does that old lady know about the academies?” Xiao Lin felt like it was incredibly similar to the virtual battle system.

“I once heard that the inspiration for the system was unknown, now I finally know.” Lilith’s expression hardened.

When the lights dimmed, two complete humans appeared. The shocking thing was that they were clones of Xiao Lin and Lilith, right down to the clothes they were wearing. The only difference was that there were no expressions on their face at all, as if they were soulless.

“It looks much better than our virtual battle systems,” Xiao Lin praised, despite the situation. The battle systems could not produce such a lifelike simulation.

“So, the granny wants us to attack them?” Xiao Lin suddenly got serious. The clones were obviously not there to drink tea with them.

When they saw the weapons that slowly formed in the hands of the clones, Lilith and Xiao Lin were speechless. They recognized the weapons; they were clearly Xiao Lin’s Holy Soul Sword and Lilith’s battle scythe. The cave could even copy their weapons.

“Let me see how good your imitation goods are!” The proud Lilith naturally could not help herself as she sped forward. Her forceful attack aimed to hit both the clones.

“So fast!” Xiao Lin exclaimed.

The cloned Lilith immediately raised her scythe, adopting a defensive stance, but the anticipated attack never landed. Lilith’s scythe had looked like it was going to attack the two of them, but she suddenly switched angles in mid-air, rushing straight for the Xiao Lin clone.

“She really is a natural born battle maniac...” Xiao Lin could only admire Lilith’s combat abilities. She had been gunning for the Xiao Lin clone from the start.

If the clones perfectly reflected reality, then dealing with the cloned Xiao Lin immediately was obviously the best choice. It would turn into a two-against-one battle after that.