Surviving The Fourth Calamity

The amount of effort Fengo exerted to turn the mages of the Sia Tower into what they are today was not small.

The devils, in fact, have always preferred mages with a high concentration of souls.

But, the biggest factor leading to their failure was also the mages.

After all, the higher the soul power, the more resolute the will.

Even if initially trapped, they might suddenly realize everything at any moment.

Moreover, unlike mortals who hesitate despite knowing they’ve been deceived, mages, for some inexplicable reasons, would drag devils down with them to perish together.

Of course, before that, they would try every possible means to redeem their souls from the devils... When all else fails, only then would they choose the drastic measure of mutual destruction.

Logically, mages of the Evil Faction aren’t very averse to committing evil with the devils, but as soon as they feel their souls no longer belong to themselves, the resistance they unleash is particularly terrifying.

The most troublesome part is that the devils don’t know what might suddenly provoke this rebellious spirit in the mages.

Clearly, they have been going with the flow... As long as they live long enough, they can conveniently ignore the destination of their souls after death.

When dealing with these inexplicably insane mages, even Asmodeus occasionally makes mistakes... The Lord of Hell rarely engages strong individuals head-on and retreats swiftly.

So, occasional bouts of misfortune are due to attempts at controlling certain Archmages resulting in backlash.

After all, whether devils or battle angels, both are entities that understand and adhere to order, and will not violate their own order unless forced.

As for mages... Even those in the Orderly Camp might inexplicably switch to chaos.

All it takes is a thought.

Especially human mages.

Their souls seem incapable of remaining on the same dimension... Despite stabilizing on a set dimension, they might abruptly leap away at any given moment.

Easier to deal with than devils, at least those guys never stay in one place; you don’t have to think about how to leverage them, just start a fight.

Fengo couldn’t comprehend this, yet Fengo still had to fulfill the task from the Lord of Hell.

To let these mages cultivate themselves to this current state, Fengo expended countless efforts.

Luckily, as long as he succeeds once, he can replicate this in other worlds... Asmodeus has entrusted Fengo with the intelligence agencies of Hell and numerous plane worlds.

He can fully replicate this model multiple times here.

If a systemic and effective method for cultivating mages could be formed, their Hell’s influence in the plane worlds would surely escalate rapidly.

Though the cost would be significant, just like in this world... Once mages can be used by Hell, they will undoubtedly bear the richest fruits.

Fengo feels that, although remaining silent, Asmodeus also agrees with this approach.

Before seeing results, however, the Lord of Hell would not voice out approval.

Nonetheless, as an experienced Hell Prosecutor, Fengo truly believes this time they can succeed.

He certainly knows the Neutral Faction contains many shadows from other Magic Towers.

But, if you say people from other worlds tend to think of themselves nine times out of ten, in this world, the mages, who know how terrifying the apocalypse is and how dreadful the Sia Tower is, would hardly abandon personal interests—less than one in ten thousand.

Moreover, humans are social creatures.

Yet in his surroundings, most people are enjoying life; even if compelled to vie for some benefits, as long as they are cold-blooded and ruthless, success is more likely.

The white-robed and black-robed of Sia have one commonality: they will certainly win in a fair and square clash.

However, if someone chooses unscrupulous methods, especially those sacrificing others’ rights and lives, it’s not that hard to snatch advantages from them.

Mages just entering the Magic Tower, in essence, are apprentices.

Before such large-scale migration to the Tower of Dark Enigma, foreign Archmages entering Sia Tower were often controlled by some and would not remain with them.

And apprentices, even if their will is rather firm, are immature, with unstable soul power and mental sea.

What does it matter if their relatives anxiously await them from afar?

As time passes, even if they wish to uphold their own beliefs, they eventually learn to protect themselves amidst endless threats from fellow apprentices and begin to retaliate.

Once their hands are dirty, and their shoes are wet, their mentality will gradually change... Of course, they would then identify more with a selfish and evil style.

Having become selfish, would they still risk their lives against the powerful Sia Tower for their parents and siblings?

Fengo actually secretly found hundreds of individuals with problematic backgrounds.

Yet, to this day, he hasn’t observed a single mage who looks back after advancing to the Intermediate level.

Even those earliest ones have become Ninth Ring Archmages... From the laws they chose upon achieving the Ninth Ring, it’s clear they’ve long forgotten their origins.

Making humans forget their origins is the best way to deal with them.

Fengo was very satisfied with the situation he had observed.

But he was also well aware that every failure of theirs, the Devils, was due to their excessive arrogance and confidence.

So, letting Glaysia and that Aislin cause a stir wasn’t a bad idea.

The other day, didn’t Rosero have Aislin use his influence to warn a Ninth Ring Mage from a Neutral Faction?

Fengo remembered that guy.

Speaking of which, when dealing with the Defense Tower, Richard Dreyfus’s vigor almost made many people think he had been wronged by the Defense Tower!

But Fengo had meticulously checked his records: that guy was very likely someone sent out by the Defense Tower.

Although this should be a secret, some wise ones could probably guess it.

After all, after occupying a large area of the original territory of the Defense Tower, the small Magic Tower controlled by his student and so-called family was overly familiar with the mines and resources controlled by the nobles in that area.

The Hainarson Family, from which Ruth brought his student, among those great nobility, was really nothing... if not for the discovery of the Mutated Cat’s Eye Stone, their mine wouldn’t even have the qualifications to be discussed in an official loot-sharing meeting.

It can only be said that the Hainarson Family hid deep enough, and even in the Defense Tower, it’s estimated that only their Archmage and a certain Tower Master knew the truth.

But if not for this Mutated Cat’s Eye Mine... normally, a Ninth Ring Archmage could not possibly understand the possessions of a mid-to-low-level Mage Family.

Even if he wanted to catch everything in one net, he would only cast the net casually, without knowing beforehand what exactly was in that net.

Only someone who originally lived in that area, filled with envy, jealousy, hatred towards their neighbors, would know even if the neighbor had gained an extra mat.

Fengo let out a cold laugh.

Most of those from the Sia Tower who chose to betray their native land decided to forget the past.

Though indifferent and selfish, it’s understandable.

But someone like Richard Dreyfus, who would jump up to completely destroy his native land and erase every trace of his origin, is quite rare.

Although he was eventually exposed by his own greed... those who could sense this part, wouldn’t expose him.

It’s not necessary.

After all, it’s not a secret that can directly ruin him, ignoring the past is better.

But people like him are also the best ones to use.

As long as you provoke their little thoughts... they definitely wouldn’t watch their neighbor, crippled by themselves, rise again.

Even Devils have their own preferences.

Fengo wouldn’t show mercy to anyone, but he can choose who to start with.

Just right, there’s a ’reason’ to make the Neutral Faction and the Sia Faction fight... he understands Glaysia well; what she hates most is being offended by someone she doesn’t think highly of from her own people.

From the start, she directly had Rosero warn Richard Dreyfus not to stir up trouble, naturally because in her eyes, people of the Sia Tower should inherently follow her orders.

Although Rosero appeared, that guy, as Glaysia’s long-time favorite, inherently represents Glaysia’s will.

If Aislin is allowed to keep jumping around like now, Fengo worries she might bring Rosero to cause trouble for his Black Tower people.

Of course, Fengo didn’t plan this previously, wishing to target those from the not-yet-arrived Nicholson instead.

After all, the Neutral Faction, no matter how it is, was nurtured diligently by them; it shouldn’t be cast away at the beginning.

But now, Fengo glanced again at that colorful structure of Nicholson’s... that guy actually painted the exterior according to the mixed magical elements on the Magic Tower!

Though careful observation would reveal the base color is pale purple, who cares to look closely?

The outer layer of his Magic Tower was made of smooth marble!

Under the sunlight, only suffocation.

It’s not that Fengo didn’t know Nicholson was a Prophecy Mage, but what he didn’t expect was that this guy lacked the abilities of a Prophecy Mage but inherited the worst traits: a fondness for flashy colors and a preference for attracting attention through madness.

He also thought about whether Nicholson was trying to disguise himself for some hidden rebellion.

However, madness as a feeling is fine for temporary performance, but a lifetime performance... that would definitely be a real madman.

Even if he wasn’t originally.

Not even the Grand Duke of Hell of the Devils can bear it.

Not to mention the people Nicholson brought along were genuinely not very normal.

They seem like a bunch of Chaotic Mages but not quite.

Fengo needs to observe seriously for a while.