Chapter 268: The Eye of the Storm (1)

"You mean activating four enchanted items at the same time...? At the west coast, wizards considered powerful can only activate two. And our enchanted items usually can't change the outcome of a battle," Reyline said in a light tone.

"Yeah, the situation is different." Stigma shook his head. "The wizards in Omandis have higher average mentality level. They have also developed methods in order to control the enchanted items better. The effects of the items can be buffed with less mentality required to activate them."

"Interesting...Do you mean rank 1 wizards like us are considered as weak in Omandis?" Hikari's brows furrowed.

"Correct, except Green. He's a strong wizard and he has a magic device. Green is still a strong wizard in Omandis." The other four wizards looked at Green right when Stigma finished speaking.

Angele had finished one meat skewer and he put several more onto the metal rack. "You already know that I'm a dark wizard. That's why I can fight better. It shouldn't be surprising. Stigma, I'm still curious about your family. Can you tell us about it if you don't mind?"

Stigma hesitated for a second before he nodded. "Sure. It's not a big deal."

He drank some wine from the bottle and started explaining.

"My father is the head. It may sound exciting, but he has more than ten sons. Only one of us is a 'pureblood' human being while the rest are all mixed blood, including me. He loves the 'real' human being much more than he loves us. That guy is also considered as the true inheritor in the family. The situation is quite complicated.

"The only people who cared about me were my mother, my young sister, and a friend named Liana. I really miss them." Angele could see the tinge of loneliness from Stigma's eyes.

"I wasn't a talented wizard apprentice. I spent years before I reached rank 3. I successfully broke the limit after I arrived at the West Coast. I was always the target of the bullies in the family. Only my sister and Liana helped me, but they are talented and important to the family. I think they have already become formal wizards. I miss my mother. Her body condition was bad when I was still Omandis...I wasted too much time in Nola. I wish they still remember me..." Stigma sighed with mixed feelings as he recalled the days he had spent in Omandis and Nola.

"We're getting close. Just pay them a visit. You're already a formal wizard, so your family members should respect you." Hikari smiled.

"You don't understand. Although I'm at the Liquid stage, there are many wizards in my family that have already reached higher stages or ranks. My sister has the family backing her up and she's talented. It's highly possible that she has already advanced to the next rank." Stigma lowered his head. The light from the flames brightened up his cheeks.

"It'll take her some time to advance to rank 2 from rank 1 no matter how talented she is." Hikari shook her head.

"Well, let's talk about something else, the atmosphere is getting heavy here. What do you guys plan to do after we arrive at Omandis?" Hikari changed the topic.

The five wizards stayed around the campfire and finished the food and had a long conversation.

Angele returned to his room, but he was still thinking about what Stigma said about the wizards in Omandis.

If Stigma was telling the truth, it meant that they had instant-cast spells other than Talent Spells.

With the magic devices and advanced meditation techniques, the wizards in Omandis must be extremely powerful. Angele was a strong wizard in Nola, but he would be considered weak in the central continent.

Angele lay on the bed quietly with blue light dots flashing in front of his eyes.

He asked Zero to simulate a battle between him and the wizards from Omandis. If the opponent had just three instant-cast spells, Angele could still win the fight. He could cast about three powerful spells instantly as he had the chip. It was his advantage during the battles.

Angele could understand why Stigma wanted to return to Omandis so bad. He wanted to prove himself to the family. Stigma reached the Liquid stage, so he was no longer a burden to his friend and his sister.

In the next ten days, the five stayed in their own room and prepared for the incoming challenges.

They created ice cubes and put them on the deck, so the third challenge did not even detect them.

For the fourth challenge, Angele increased the speed of the airships and asked the wizards to stop breathing for three minutes. They survived that with no problem as well.

It all came to the last problem.

********************

In the endless blue sky, three airships were slowly advancing in the air.

Five light wizards were standing on the deck of the first airship. They were glancing around and exchanging information using the energy particles.

The airships slowed down quickly and floated in the air.

The golden sunlight brought warmth to the deck and illuminated on the white robes the wizards were wearing.

"The biggest problem of the trip is ahead," Stigma spoke in a serious tone. "The Eye of Al'akir. there's no dangerous creature around it but it can be considered as a natural disaster."

The other four wizards looked at the scene ahead with serious expressions on their faces.

The sky was beautiful and clear over the airships.

However, dark clouds covered the area ahead. There was an enormous tornado connecting the land and the sky and it was spinning slowly.

Yet, the tornado was quiet. Angele could not hear it making any noise.

The gigantic column of twisting air blocked the view of the plain down the airship. The only thing in the wizards' sights was the seemingly endless sea of drifting clouds.

There was only a tiny gap between heaven and hell.

"This is the last challenge we have and it's something complicated. First, we need to wait for the wind to weaken so we can travel around its edge," Stigma explained. "Moreover, there are large groups of storm spirits inside the tornado. They're created by mother nature and they're way powerful than the ones created by potions. Stay alert everyone, they can use electric pulses and they come in large numbers."

"Sounds like a lot of trouble," Hikari shook her head.

"Yeah, the Cloud Bees and the tornado are the most difficult challenges in the trip. We can dodge the creatures, but we can't dodge the tornado." Stigma nodded.

"Can't we just change the route a bit?" Angele asked.

"No. The area around the tornado is the safest place here as the strong flying creatures can't get close to it. We have to win the fight against the storm spirits." Stigma shrugged.

"Alright then. It's about time, increase the airships' speed." Reyline opened his mouth. He had successfully advanced to the Crystal stage after surviving the fourth challenge, but he still needed to stabilize his mentality.

"Sure." Angele nodded and activated the amulet in his hand.

The three airships were surrounded by green energy particles and their speed started increasing.

The gray tornado was getting larger and larger in Angele's eyes as the airship approached it.

After several minutes, the wizards could hear the violent storm roaring.

Angele felt like that his ears were covered by a thick blanket. The strong pressure from the wind was making him uncomfortable. He was having trouble inhaling air.

The furious wind scratched his face like blades of swords.

The envelopes of the airships were leaning backward and the green energy particles were trying its best to keep the airships stable.

The airships looked like three tiny ants moving around a large gray hourglass.

The five wizards lowered their head and hid behind the railings. Angele was still checking the situation ahead from time to time.

"Get ready! They're coming!" Stigma shouted.

*WOO*

Many vortices jumped onto the deck and formed many tall storm spirits within seconds.

The storm spirits looked identical to human beings, some of them were male and the rest was female. They were naked, and their skin was covered with blue electric pulses.

"Invaders! Die! In the name of Al'akir, I shall destroy you!" The leader of the storm spirits shouted in an ancient language. It was a female storm spirit. Her eyes were white, and they were glowing. Countless electric pulses gathered in her hands and formed a lengthy lightning spear.

The blue spear looked like a long lightning bolt and it was sparking.

"Die!" She threw the spear to the wizards.

"Let me handle this!" Reyline stepped forward. "Protect Green! Make sure he can control those wind energy particles from the matrix!"

The spear drew a straight line in the air and flew toward Reyline. He had already prepared the energy barrier. However, the direction of the spear changed as it approached the airship. The spear turned to the right and flew toward Angele.

Angele's expression changed. Blue light dots flashed in front of his eyes, and he was holding the amulet tight in his hand. The amulet was the key to this challenge. He needed to make sure that the direction and speed of the airships were perfect as the terrifying tornado was right beside them. If the wind energy particles lost control, the airships would be dragged into the eye of the storm. No one would be able to survive that. Even the storm spirits had no idea what was in the eye of the tornado. The pressure of the wind would tear all invaders apart.

Angele already did the simulation before the storm spirits jumped on the deck. Their chances of survival were lower than 0.1% if the airship was hit directly by the tornado.

He was focusing on controlling the airship like in the plan they had discussed. It was hard for him to keep the airships stable while traveling around the edge of the storm and it was nearly impossible for him to defend against the attacks from the storm spirits.