Chapter 010: Troublesome Woman (2)

Facing such a person, Du Fan naturally didn’t dare take her lightly. Though the two chatted and joked along the way, Du Fan kept probing her with questions, and in no time, he learned quite a lot. For example, the position of the Magic Executive was actually that of the leader of the Mage Guild, with branches across the guild all under its control. After learning these things, Du Fan grew even more impressed with Kristy. In his understanding, her power was sometimes even greater than that of President Edward, and if she wanted to sideline him, it wouldn’t be too difficult. This was also why the Magic Executive had always been someone the current president trusted implicitly.

However, these matters were internal secrets of the Mage Guild, yet Kristy showed no intention of hiding them from him. Even though Du Fan had clearly probed her before, she still answered without hesitation—her attitude was rather strange. Still, the fact that the Mage Guild had invited someone like him, a charlatan, to its headquarters was already extremely strange, so these additional oddities didn’t surprise him much.

That said, though Kristy answered everything, whenever Du Fan subtly asked about the purpose of their invitation, she quickly changed the subject. After trying a few times and realizing she would likely never reveal it, Du Fan stopped asking and instead inquired about various issues he faced while practicing magic. Although Chenchen was a good teacher when it came to learning spells, she only taught the techniques themselves and nothing else. As a result, though Du Fan progressed quickly, his control over magic power lagged behind his abilities. Kristy seemed to see through this, so when Du Fan asked, she didn’t hold back and directly pointed out his weaknesses, giving him an epiphany.

The journey from the guild’s internal trading area to the central mage tower wasn’t long, but Du Fan learned a great deal. He couldn’t help but think to himself that if he could thoroughly study those issues, his strength in magic would surely improve significantly, if not in combat energy as well.

One question, one answer—yet the two seemed incredibly close. While Du Fan boldly asked about the intricacies of various spells, Kristi revealed everything without reservation, making Du Fan think that it would be foolish not to take advantage of such kindness.

Still, Du Fan couldn’t help but wonder: Since the Mage Guild had already given him so much for no reason, what exactly did they plan to do next? He feared that once he owed them a favor, he might be forced to do things he didn’t want to refuse.

However, Du Fan’s worries didn’t last long. After talking for a while longer, the two arrived at an open square. In the center of the square stood a building in the shape of a hexagram, with a towering mage tower at its core. Kristi pointed to the hexagonal building and said, “This can be considered the most important place in the Mage Guild’s headquarters. Most of its functional departments are located here. But the true core, as you must be aware, Du Fan, is that inner mage tower.”

With that, Kristi led Du Fan inside. The hexagonal building had no doors or windows, appearing completely sealed. Du Fan frowned but said nothing. Seeming to sense his confusion, Kristi smiled slightly and said, “Du Fan, don’t be fooled by the lack of doors and windows. In fact, there’s no need to use them to enter. Each department has its own method. With the abundant magical energy within the guild, anything is possible.”

Du Fan nodded and asked, “So, to get in, one must use a magic array?” Kristi confirmed, “Yes. But the location of the magic arrays varies from place to place. Entering the mage tower is the most troublesome.”

With that, Kristi waved her hand, and suddenly a dark hole appeared on the otherwise empty ground. She pointed at it and said, “Du Fan, I’m afraid we’ll have to trouble you a bit. Since you’re not part of our Mage Guild, you can’t use the teleportation array to reach the entrance of the mage tower. So, we’ll have to take the secret path.”

Saying that, Kristi stepped down first.

This suddenly appearing secret passage seemed incredibly mysterious, with various runes painted all over the walls. As the two of them moved forward, the magic crystals on both sides of the walls kept lighting up, but they would go out immediately after they left, somewhat resembling the sensor lights Du Fan had seen in his past life.

Kristi said as they walked, “According to the rules of the Mage Guild, the requirements to enter the inner part of the mage tower are very strict. Of course, since you, Lord Du Fan, have me to guide you, you’re exempt from these rules. But for outsiders, even if they can break through the outer walls and defeat the guards, it’s not that easy to get inside the mage tower.”

Du Fan curled his lips and said, “If it’s a Saint-level powerhouse, they can just fly up there in no time.”

Kristi seemed to laugh and said, “Young Master Du Fan, what you’re saying also seems highly unlikely. Because within a few hundred meters of this mage tower is a completely no-fly zone. Even if a Saint-level powerhouse could break through such restrictions and fly, how much of their strength would be left for fighting? By then…”

She stopped speaking here.

But Du Fan knew exactly what she wanted to say next. Even a Saint-level powerhouse, faced with a bunch of mages in such a place, what could they do? Other than fleeing in panic, there was probably no other option.

After walking a bit further, a small magic array appeared at the end of the path. Kristi stepped onto it first before saying, “This magic array is deep underground in the mage tower and can directly transport you to the entrance of the tower. Also, this place doesn’t require any guards. If no one from the Mage Guild volunteers to guide you, even if you get in, you won’t be able to teleport to the mage tower… Of course, exactly why this is the case is a secret of the Mage Guild…”

As she spoke, she made a gesture inviting him to follow.

Du Fan frowned but didn’t say much, instead stepping forward quickly.

Of course, Du Fan sensed a faint magical fluctuation coming from all directions. Immediately afterward, the space changed, and before he could even react, the scenery in front of him had transformed into something else.

What appeared before Du Fan was the huge mage tower of the Mage Guild headquarters, and the place he was standing on was clearly the top of that hexagonal-shaped building.

Kristi stood beside Du Fan, smiling gently and saying, “Young Master Du Fan, you’re the first outsider to come here in all these years… This is a rare opportunity. Why don’t you take some time to look around first?”
Du Fan could easily tell this was polite talk. He shook his head slightly and said, “It’s better not to. The matters concerning the president are more urgent!”
Kristi nodded and said, “In that case, we’ll wait for the next opportunity… Young Master Du Fan, look—this is where we’re going next. Once we enter through there, we’ll officially be inside the Mage Tower.”
As she spoke, Kristi pointed to a black door at the base of the mage tower.
Du Fan frowned as he glanced at it, suddenly feeling as if waves of coldness were emanating from within the door, giving off a somewhat terrifying aura.
Kristi’s expression turned serious as she said, “Young Master Du Fan, once you enter here, no matter what you see or feel, you must pretend you know nothing. What’s inside are real monsters—essentially the last line of defense for the Mage Guild’s tower. Though they may seem docile and harmless at first, they’re by no means easy to deal with. I think you understand what I mean.”
By then, the two had arrived at the black door.
But under such circumstances, what else could Du Fan say? Other than forcing a wry smile, he could only nod slightly.
Kristi slowly pushed open the door. Immediately, Du Fan felt an even stronger wave of cold air hit him—several times more intense than when the door was closed.
It was a room of unknown size, filled with a blood-red hue and a strong scent of blood. Amidst these smells lay a palpable chill.
At the top of the room hung a huge magic crystal lamp, casting countless blood-red glows. Under this illumination, the entire room took on an eerie beauty.
In the center of the room was a massive crimson magic circle, with statues standing in each corner. The statues seemed drenched in the blood of some creature, which kept flowing. The intense smell of blood Du Fan smelled came from this place.