Chapter 278: The Third Arcane Gate Beckons
"To be frank, every arcane team needs someone with extremely high defensive abilities to act as a meat shield. One which will never fall regardless of what is done to it. This kind of arcane master poses a great headache towards the opponent, forcing them to hesitate before engaging."
"But for a high level Green Dragon Bloodline holder to take on this role is a little too wasteful, isn't it?"
"It's not like you guys don't know Stingham. So what if he has a Green Dragon Bloodline, he is too lazy… I think it is most suitable for him to be our meat shield. He can bask in glory as he charges head first towards the enemy without a single care. And due to his dragon bloodline, his body can innately take a greater beating and also has a faster recovery than a normal body."
"Even amongst meat shields, a dragon bloodline is still a dragon bloodline. He will be the peak of meat shields."
Wilde, Ivan, and the others quietly conversed in the attic of one of the pointed huts back above ground.
Stingham silently ate beside them in a depressed mood.
"The reason for arcane masters to exist is to maintain the peace of Doraster and protect the people they care for…"
"The war is still going on! How can you give in to your exhaustion?!"
"Get up, brave warrior!"
Ayrin's sleeping body began twisting and turning on the ground as he abruptly shouted out loud.
It seemed like his consciousness had already awoken, but his body was too exhausted to move and wished to keep lying there. His consciousness wasn't quite strong enough to will his body to move in such a state.
"If I don't get up now, I won't wake up again for several days!"
"You bastard, hurry up and pull yourself up!"
As Ayrin desperately continued his struggle, a light began to emerge within his body below his two already opened arcane gates as if a door was being slowly pushed open.
Ayrin's face contorted and his eyes violently opened as he powerfully clutched his fists and jumped up from the ground.
"Ack!"
Stingham, who was in the process of eating a banana, was so shocked by Ayrin's sudden awakening that he accidently shoved the entire banana into his mouth, causing his eyes to water.
"Damn it Ayrin, what are you doing?! Did you scare me on purpose? If that banana had killed me, wouldn't I have died the most humiliating death in the history of Doraster's arcane masters?!" Stingham dejectedly shouted as he gasped for air.
"Stingham, hurry and use your Water Dragon to hit me," Ayrin said as he tried to figure out what Stingham was talking about.
"Eh?" Stingham froze, then immediately shook his head. "Forget it. Although you pranked me, I'm not so petty as to take revenge, right?"
"It's not that. I want to figure something out," Ayrin explained as he rubbed his eyes.
Stingham rolled his eyes as he said, "I have never received such a perverse request before."
"Don't you go around begging for others to hit you all the time?" Charlotte and the others thought. Stingham's snide comment caused them to feel speechless.
"Water Dragon!"
There was a loud bang as Stingham invoked his skill following Ayrin's insistence, sending Ayrin careening backwards out of a window.
A drenched, but seemingly full of energy Ayrin quickly reentered the hut as he shouted, "Alright! Have you rested enough, brave warrior Stingham? If so, let us depart once more!"
"You want to leave just like this? You aren't going to rest any longer?" Charlotte exclaimed as she caringly looked at Ayrin.
"I can't. The war out there is still going on. Teacher Liszt and the others, along with countless of our Kingdom of Eiche's arcane teams, are still tirelessly fighting the enemy. How can I continue to rest?"
Fighting intent surged out from Ayrin as he waved his fist and continued, "And only through battle can I continue to become stronger. I can already feel that my mental strength has increased greatly. I am a mere step away from reaching the critical point for opening my third arcane gate."
"What?! You are already…" Charlotte, Ivan, and the others were all flabbergasted!
"Yep! I can already sense it, only my body is not yet strong enough and my arcane particles are not yet powerful enough, so I am unable to assault it." Ayrin was full of excitement as he said, "If I can fight against more powerful enemies, then I will be able to progress faster. I will be able to become a three gate arcane master even faster!"
A thought abruptly passed through everyone's mind, "This fellow's improvement speed is too unbelievable. He has almost caught up with Stingham." But at the same time, they could kind of accept it as they thought of the hardships which Ayrin endured while training, and of all of the powerful opponents which he had encountered and defeated. They shook their heads. Indeed, it would be strange if he, who had fought life and death battles before, wasn't able to catch up with someone like Stingham who didn't train and relied on innate talent.
"Regardless, if this fellow truly manages to open his third arcane gate during this war, then his improvement speed will likely be the fastest in the history of St. Lauren? … And his speed of recovery. Isn't it a little too excellent…"
Even Ferguillo, who hadn't bowed his head before Rinsyi or any of the other geniuses, couldn't help but shake his head.
"Let us set out and search for the fragments of the Tree of Life which are said to be here?" Ayrin suggested
Stingham glanced at Rinloran, who was still asleep beside him as he noted, "But what about Rinloran. He is still asleep."
"Let us take turns carrying him. It is the same way we carried you over," Ayrin replied naturally.
"Alright! This time, I must find something good for myself!" Stingham shouted towards the sky. Afterwards, he said to Ayrin, "You carry him first."
Upon seeing the three of them about to leave, Charlotte threw away her reservations as she said, "Ayrin, you must be careful."
"I will definitely defeat the enemy and return," Ayrin replied as he vigorously nodded his head.
……
……
……
The pillar of gas in the center of Fallen Shadow Valley continued to distort as it chaotically spewed countless glowing particles into the air around it.
From this scene, one could tell just how fierce the fighting within the abyss was regardless of what corner of Fallen Shadow Valley one was in.
From amidst the shadows of a splintered Devil Snake Tree, a short figure and a tall figure simultaneously appeared. It was the Allen Brothers who had chased Ayrin's group.
"Brother… it looks like they have already broken into the core of Fallen Shadow Valley. Should we flee? Otherwise, they might blockade the entire area, and we might not be able to escape," the clumsy looking younger brother said to the older one as they both looked at the pillar of gas.
"We don't need to flee."
The older Allen Brother's face was cold and calm as he shook his head, "Although I do not know what Diaz and the other higher ups are planning, I am quite certain that they knew that knew it was impossible to hold Fallen Shadow Valley in the first place. Yet they still haven't retreated, or even shown signs of retreating. So I am inclined to believe that this war will not end in such a simple manner. There is a big storm brewing in the horizon."
"Brother, what are you thinking?" the younger one asked as they nodded in agreement.
The elder brother turned and looked at the younger one as he continued, "But no matter what happens, this current state of chaos is a great opportunity for us to increase our strength… in this current situation, everything is finders keepers. Perhaps we will be able to lay our hands on things we would never have seen or touched otherwise."
"I understand, brother! Then let us depart!"
The figures of the Allen Brothers quickly faded back into the darkness.