The Golem Mage

Selene, Alec, and the rest of the team made their way back to the inn after the battle between the Bloodline Academy and the Crimson Rose Academy.

The matches for the day had concluded , with another round set to take place the following day.

As they walked, the team engaged in a discussion about the significance of securing a qualification to enter the top 8 rankings, sixteen academies had been invited, with eight based on the previous rankings and another eight added to complete the line-up, this meant they would have to challenge the ”Great Eight” to earn a spot.

While his teammates were filled with jubilation and a lil celebration, Alec’s thoughts lingered on what he had witnessed in the Colosseum.

The power and skills showcased by Damien were enough to qualify him as peak-tier 5 mages, even though he had not officially reached that realm.

Alec couldn’t help but recognize that Damien’s execution of blood magic was on an entirely different level, making him think towards his master who also had an out of world affinity with earth element.

Furthermore, Alec realized that Damien had always been holding back, revealing only a fraction of his true strength, this realization led Alec to classify him as a mage with a low-tier 6 combat power.

Sighing, he came to understand why Selene had doubted their chances of even surviving in the competition.

A stroke of luck had led them to face the Bandit Academy, which proved to be a relatively straightforward opponent compared to the formidable Bloodline Academy.

It was this victory that gave them a sense of accomplishment.

”What a drag!” Alec unknowingly voiced his frustration aloud, as he though of the challenges he was bound to face .

”Exciting, isn’t it?” Selene asked with enthusiasm as they finally arrived at the inn and entered.

”Yeah, it’s definitely exciting, But what’s up with the power levels of those mages from the Bloodline Academy? It’s almost as if they are several years ahead of us, how can first-year students possess such strength?” Alec questioned.

Despite the advantages he had gained from his system, Alec always recognized that there was undoubtedly someone out there stronger, but after witnessing Damien’s power, Alec knew he would have no chance against him.

Even if he believed that he had a shot at victory by elevating all his golems to the Tier 5 realm, he discarded that thought upon realizing that Damien carried his own blood supply.

Alec felt an unparalleled desire for power, after all everything he had witnessed was merely a glimpse of one man’s abilities, so he started to wondered how formidable the entire Bloodline Academy main team would be.

”They are not called The Great Eight Academies for nothing, behind each one of the top 8 academies, there are various high-rank or ancient-rank clans offering their support to draw funds towards them from the kingdom’s budget, since the descendants of these clans also attend these academies, they also try to enhance their clan’s influence within the academy,” Selene explained.

Alec looked confused, struggling to grasp the meaning behind Selene’s words.

Sensing his confusion, Selene clarified,

”The cream of the crop, the most talented geniuses, tend to choose the top 8 academies, only because they have this better opportunities for nurturing and faster growth that the High and the Ancient Tier clans had provided , while other academies often have to make do with less exceptional mages.”

”Now imagine an academy with abundant resources housing the best talents, cultivating in the most fertile grounds, that’s how they create the best and strongest mages,” Selene elaborated.

”Well, what’s next for us?” Alec inquired.

Selene continued, informing him,

”Our fate will be decided after the first round ends in four days, the eight teams that emerge victorious will be ranked based on their performance, while the last-ranked team will have to compete against the winner of the loser’s bracket, only by defeating them can we officially rank as one of the top 8 teams, and another level of competition will commence.”

”The way you say it makes it seem like you already know we will be ranked last,” Beatrice questioned.

”Well, that’s because this team is clearly the weakest in realm, and I’m sure they will take full advantage of that to push us to the bottom rank, especially since the War God Academy doesn’t even have an executive-level personnel to defend us in such situations,” Selene explained, a smile on her face that puzzled the others, as Its almost seemed as if she was enjoying the challenge they were facing.

The team members went their separate rooms, each with their own agenda after the intense experiences they had just gone through in the Colosseum.

”There is a training room in the basement, you should check it out when you have some free time,” Selene suggested to Alec as he began walking away.

He paused for a moment, nodded in her direction, and then continued back to his room. He was eager to explore something he had been anticipating.

Selene had only mentioned the training room because she felt Alec was somewhat lazy and believed he could become even stronger if he were a bit more serious.

While she acknowledged his existing strength, she believed he had the potential to surpass his current self if he dialled back on his sleeping habits.

Though cultivators could go without sleep for extended periods, Selene had observed that Alec always found time to rest, even going to bed a day before the competition began.

Little did she know the challenges Alec faced during his sleep, if she knew, she probably wouldn’t have been so insistent on changing his sleeping patterns.

The rest of the team fell into deep contemplation, acknowledging their own shortcomings before immersing themselves in cultivation to surpass their previous selves as some of them still have cultivation pills.

They didn’t want to waste a single second, especially in the capital where the concentration of mana was twice as pure.

The night reached with the team diligently cultivating, except for Alec.

As he was eagerly awaiting a countdown to reach 00:00,

When he read the mid-rank scrolls given to him by both his master and the Dean the day before, the system had presented him with an option:

- [Decipher and assimilate the Fire element spell scroll for 10,000 System points (Y/N)]

- [Decipher and assimilate the Earth element spell scroll (Terran’s version) for a total of 50,000 System points (Y/N)]

His breath caught in his throat as he realized he would have to spend yet another set of system points.

However, he understood that Terran’s version of the Earth spell had been significantly altered, containing multiple mid-tier elemental spells and that’s why its value worth so much.

With that in mind, he quickly made the payment, anticipating a swift understanding of the spell.

However to his surprise, a twenty-four-hour countdown timer appeared, causing Alec to wait patiently, eager to harness the power of mid-rank spells.

As he believed that adding them to his arsenal would elevate his combat power to an entirely new level, he could already envision the change in his teammates’ expressions when they discovered his ability to comprehend a mid-tier spell after just twenty-four hours of study.

Suddenly, a soft chime rang out, signalling the end of the twenty-four-hour period.