The scorching heat waves rolled out in all directions with a roaring sound.
Inside the Mage Tower.
Lynn raised an eyebrow, holding a steaming dumpling in one hand as he gazed out the door.
[What the hell? Has Winter Spring Valley been invaded? Or is there someone here to stir up trouble?]
[But it’s a bit surprising. There’s actually someone who can summon ancient elemental spirits to assist in spellcasting now?]
[Shouldn’t those elemental spirits have been driven out of this plane by me two thousand years ago?]
Meanwhile, outside.
The thick smoke gradually dissipated.
A petite mage in a red robe, clutching a staff, stood there in a daze, black smoke puffing out of her mouth.
“...This isn’t how it’s supposed to go…” she muttered blankly.
And in the next moment.
A series of urgent and terrified screams from the elemental spirits echoed in her ears.
“Run! Juejuezi, run!!”
Hearing those voices, Juejuezi shuddered and, without a second thought, turned around and sprinted toward the distant forest at an unimaginable speed.
Though she didn’t understand why.
It was clear that the elemental spirits had a very good reason for telling her to run.
As a powerful Fire Archmage, the reason she was hailed as the most outstanding magical genius in the Sea King Palace in a thousand years was because she had been blessed by ancient elemental spirits since birth.
It was precisely because of these elemental spirits.
That she could unleash fire magic with power far beyond her peers.
And it was also why.
She had managed to stand out in the Sea King Palace, an organization dominated almost entirely by water mages, and focus on mastering fire magic.
“So what’s going on?!”
Juejuezi ran breathlessly, her voice filled with urgency.
“Why are we running?!”
She could clearly sense the restless agitation and fear of the elemental spirits around her.
This was something she had never seen before.
As ancient elemental spirits that had existed since time immemorial, they usually spoke of even the most powerful mages with disdain, referring to some historical demigods as mere mortals.
She had never seen them this terrified.
“Juejuezi, what kind of place have you brought us to…” the elemental spirits’ voices were filled with despair.
“Winter Spring Valley, the holy land of mages! I’ve already told you!” Juejuezi panted as she ran.
“Are you sure this is Winter Spring Valley? Not the lair of demons?!”
“The lair of demons?!” Juejuezi was shocked.
The elemental spirits trembled. “Do you know what you just had us attack? Do you know?!”
Juejuezi stammered, “Wh…what…”
The elemental spirits quivered. “An ancient demon, a forbidden being who destroyed our homeland, a devil who tried to enslave us and humiliated us for thousands of years!!”
“He’s still alive… he’s still alive and well in this world…”
Buzz—
Juejuezi’s mind went blank.
This… this has to be a joke, right?!
A demon?
A forbidden being?
Isn’t that Nanako’s Mage Tower? How could it be connected to something like this?!
But in that instant.
She immediately recalled the ancient, tragic history the elemental spirits had often shared with her.
Once.
In the endless ages of a thousand years ago.
The elemental spirits had existed as the rulers of all elements in the world.
And the most powerful spirit of each element was crowned with the title of “Elemental King.”
Such as the Fire Elemental King, the Water Elemental King, and so on.
And their supreme ruler was simply called the [Elemental King], the king of all elements, the king of kings.
This order had persisted for countless years.
But two thousand years ago, a terrifying being invaded their realm.
And everything changed.
She had indeed heard the elemental spirits mention it.
That ancient, ruthless figure who had driven them out of this world two thousand years ago and appointed countless rulers to replace them…
“The Elemental Father?!”
Juejuezi exclaimed in horror.
“Don’t say that insulting title in front of us!!” The elemental spirits around her screamed in despair.
Though they didn’t want to admit it.
That title had long been etched into the very essence of every elemental spirit.
Making it impossible for them to forget.
In the tradition of the elemental spirits, any spirit powerful enough could challenge the Elemental King.
If they won, they could take the throne.
And carve their own name and title into the Elemental Heart.
And as long as no new spirit challenged them.
That title would remain engraved in the essence of every newly born elemental spirit.
So they would know who the supreme ruler of the elements was.
And after that demon defeated their Elemental King, he naturally took the Elemental Heart—the ancient artifact—from their king.
The powerful spirits of the past had always inscribed their titles in the format of [Elemental King: XXXX].
This had never changed for countless ages.
But ever since that being took control of the elemental realm, everything changed.
“When he defeated all our kings and took the Elemental Heart, we were there…” the elemental spirits trembled.
“He wanted to inscribe his own title, and of course, we didn’t dare stop him. We thought he would follow the tradition of our past kings…”
“But we were too naive!”
“He thought the space on the Elemental Heart was too big, and if he didn’t fill it up, it would be a waste of his awesomeness. So do you know what his full title is?”
Juejuezi stammered, “Isn’t it the Elemental Father?”
“No!! That’s just the short version!!”
The elemental spirits wailed in despair.
“His full title is [The Great and Virtuous Elemental Father, the True Parent of All Elemental Spirits, Occasionally the Mother, the Future Ruler of All Things, the Possessor of True Virtue and Kindness Who Helps Old Ladies Cross the Street Without Charging, the Double-Wood Lynn, the Eternal Sovereign of Elemental Spirits, the True Elemental Parent Lynn (Parentheses) Too Long to Write the Full Title.]”
Buzz—
Juejuezi’s mind went blank.
The elemental spirits murmured, “Do you know what it feels like to have this ridiculous title echo in the depths of our souls every two minutes? Do you know how hard it is for us to even try to summon him once?!”
“Do you know why elemental mages were so miserable a thousand years ago?!”
Juejuezi asked blankly, “Wh…why…”
The elemental spirits cried out, “Because you’d be dead before you could even finish the incantation!!”