Age of Adepts

The floating city was crashing.

There wasn’t much time left for the invaders to scour the city and look for resources and treasures.

As such, the fighting on the floating city increased in intensity!

Meanwhile, in the inner circle of the floating city, in an arcane academy seven kilometers away from the arcane palace, an unprecedented lecture was going on.

It was the same knowledge hall and the same two figures.

Lucia was seated solemnly in the first row of the knowledge hall, seriously and attentively listening to Sir Brown’s teachings.

Today, Sir Brown was lecturing on the theory of life’s origin. He was discussing his opinions and views on the subject, along with the theories proposed by other scholars.

The broad knowledge hall was empty. There was only him and Lucia. Yet, his gentle and warm voice reverberated throughout the room, so loud that even the apocalyptic elementium explosions occurring outside could not stifle his voice.

“The different planes have different theories and opinions on the origin of life.

“In the world ruled by the gods, the unified acknowledged explanation is that life was created by the gods. Everything in the world, every life in the material planes, was created by the mixture of a god’s body or blood with substance from a material plane.

“These liars that profit on faith have managed to trick many people into becoming their believers through this theory, but it is a theory that cannot be fully justified. At the very least, they can’t explain how they, the gods, came to be.”

Sir Brown couldn’t help but start laughing at this point in the lecture.

Meanwhile, through the semi-translucent crystal wall behind him, another arcane tower could be seen crashing through the ground, causing a shocking explosion on the surface of the city.

The tremors quickly reached the arcane academy, causing all the nearby buildings to sway and shake as well. Even the knowledge hall trembled slightly, endless dust and loose pieces of porcelain crumbling from the ornate dome above them.

However, the two people in the hall were not bothered by any of this. They were still committed to the lecture, one giving the speech as best as he could, and the other listening in as attentively as possible.

“—most planar creatures live their entire lives in ignorance, never realizing that they are within a sealed space protected by a planar barrier. It is only when high-grade individuals who have awakened to self-awareness realize this problem that they would begin searching for answers.

“And their answers lie in space.

“The material planes are not all that material after all, and the void is not truly void after all.

“Every planar world is pieced together by various unusual substances that have been whisked together by the spacestorms. These substances are all cold and lifeless, without any trace of intelligence and certainly home to no plant or animal life. However, as the planar barrier slowly forms and envelops the entire world, the plane will be isolated from the terrifying and fearsome spacestorms outside. Then, in less than a hundred years, a seed of life will form out of nothing within the barrier.”

Arcanist Brown couldn’t help but lift his head and look to the skies above. His tone was filled with respect and yearning for the wondrous space beyond his own world.

“The Empire’s research on planar life has existed for thousands of years now. During this time, those Great Arcanists who possess enough power to destroy worlds have even created primeval planes of their own. They then spent hundreds of years observing the process of lifeforms coming into existence out of absolutely nothing.

“Then, where did the first life in the plane come from?”Lucia couldn’t help but open her eyes wide. She licked her lips slightly and asked hurriedly.

“From beyond the planes, from the endless void of space.” Arcanist Brown couldn’t help but sigh.

“Beyond the planes? The endless void of space?” Lucia couldn’t help but repeat to herself.

“Indeed, the Great Arcanists were in just as much disbelief as you are! To think that the first source of planar life came from beyond the material planes.” Brown’s tone quickly returned to normal. “The Great Arcanists conducted all sorts of investigations after coming to this conclusion. They then realized that most planar creatures that could be found in a material plane were 87% similar in nature. Though some of these lifeforms had their bodies and skeletal structure changed by the different environments of the different planes they were born in, at their very core, they were all born of the same origin of life.”

Rumbling explosions continued to ring out beyond the knowledge hall. The constant rain of fire from above had ignited many of the academy’s buildings, causing them to melt like wax.

The entire city was silently burning to ashes.

A towering flame giant could be seen roaring on the distant horizon. Endless flames were cast to the sky with his every move and action. It seemed like he was fighting against a powerful enemy.

The arcane barrier around the knowledge hall had yet to disperse. It barely kept out the horrifying heat waves.

However, the arcane arrays carved on the thick pillars around the hall had been damaged by the earlier earthquakes. Some of these strange fires had managed to seep through the cracks in the barrier, causing the temperature in the hall to slowly rise.

The buildings around the hall had all collapsed and melted, one after another. Only the barrier around the knowledge hall was barely functional due to Arcanist Brown’s presence. However, judging from the harsh and frightening environment around them, the barrier would not last for much longer.

“Since the Great Arcanists realized that life originated from beyond the material planes, did they not attempt to search for the true origin of all life?” Lucia asked hastily, her face flushed bright red.

“Space beyond the planes is savage and ferocious, so much so that those who have not experienced it themselves will not be able to understand. It is for the sake of searching for the arcane secrets deep in space and for the sake of finding the source of all planar life that the Great Arcanists had created the incomparably powerful pseudo-planar fortresses. These fortresses followed along a fixed trajectory, conquering every plane they encountered along the way.

“Prior to this crisis, the Arcane Empire had discovered and conquered a total of 2,317 planes. All of these planes were turned into lesser planes and resource planes for our homeworld.

“Some Great Arcanists believe to this day that if we are able to travel to every planar world and project the influence and power of the Arcane Empire to every corner of the universe, that no secret will remain a secret in our eyes. The entire multiverse will be like an arcane garden in our backyards, free for us to take what we wish.”

“This…professor, doesn’t such a philosophy depart from our original starting point? If we proceed in this fashion, then what sets us apart from those disaster creatures?” Pain and struggle appeared on Lucia’s face, and she shook her head in frustration.

“Young Lucia, do you think that everyone is like you? Do you think everyone can maintain that innocent ideal of theirs forever? Uncover the origin of the planes, discover the truth of the universe! Everyone can hold on to such ideals when they first start on their arcane journey. However, as our power grows in scale and magnitude, as the knowledge we amass grows in amount and depth, we become able to destroy a plane and annihilate a world with a wave of our hands. When that happens, do you think we will still be able to calmly pursuit our ideals without being swayed?” Brown let out a sorrowful sigh.

“After countless years of investigations and hypotheses by countless arcanists, the elders of the arcane empire firmly believe that this multiverse we live in might not be the only multiverse, nor all that exists out there. There might be other sanctuaries of life beyond our own multiverse. Moreover, for the sake of maintaining the activity and circulation of life within their worlds, there exists a strange exchange of substances and lifeforms between these different multiverses.

“Exchanges are happening between the multiverses. Within each individual multiverse, there is also necessarily a subtle, yet certain, exchange of substance and lifeforms between the material plane.”

Lucia couldn’t help but open her mouth wide in shock when she heard this. She muttered, “If…if such an exchange truly exists, then who or what is the first driving force? Could…could there be an ultimate lifeform in the multiverse that watches over and governs everything within the multiverse?”

“Young Lucia, you should already know that when a planar world’s lifeform grows and flourishes, a vague planar consciousness will be born. This planar consciousness acts on instinct and will manipulate the planar laws, allowing the entire plane to run according to certain laws and rules.”

“Then, our Morrian Plane also has a planar consciousness?” Lucia opened her eyes wide in curiosity.

“Of course it has. You, me, and any life or substance on Morrian Plane is part of the great planar consciousness. If you are fortunate enough to advance to become a First Ring arcanist, you will be able to come into contact with the great planar consciousness for a brief instant at the moment of advancement.” Brown looked at this smart and eager student of his with endearing eyes.

Though the two of them were not disciple and mentor, he had acknowledged the two of them as such in the depths of his heart. He was now teaching her and passing down his legacy as if she was his disciple.

Lucia frowned and thought deeply.

She couldn’t imagine what it was like for such a massive plane to have developed a consciousness of its own. Would it feel the same way as a human or any ordinary lifeform? Would it feel emotions or pain? How did it then control the lifeforms that lived in the plane?

The rumbling of the elementium explosions from outside the hall was even louder now.

The battle that the flame giant was engaged in was slightly approaching the knowledge hall. The walls around the building had already turned bright red from the intense heat. The domed ceiling above them had started to soften, causing red drops of lava to drip down on them.

Arcanist Brown waved his hand, and a tall golem standing to the side walked over, using its large body and full arms to shield them from the crumbling ceiling.

The temperature in the hall was even more unbearable now!

At this moment, the floating city was halfway down the sky. The city itself was tilted at a forty-five-degree angle. Most of the surface of the city was already crumbling or burning.

The horizon appeared to be slanted when looking out of the crystal walls.

Flames were everywhere, as was fighting and carnage. It was an apocalypse come to life.

They did not have much time left!