021. The Tranquil Leoz
White Candle Star's capital, Trivilla.
Leoz looked down at the entire "city" from high above.
Calling it a city was somewhat an understatement.
It should be called a "paradise."
This was the most urbanized area on the entire planet, where sixteen top-tier magic academies converged, covering an astonishing 300,000 square kilometers.
The land was filled with forests, swamps, and lakes, with rolling mountains, beautiful scenery, abundant relic resources, and numerous dungeons created by mages for students to train in, jokingly referred to as "monster farming cages"—artificial ecosystems.
Majestic castles rose like towers to the sky, some stretching for thousands of kilometers, with mercury bases and blue magical light piercing the atmosphere, connecting the earth and the heavens. Massive teleportation rings continuously lit up in the spaceport, transporting vast amounts of resources and passengers to outer space, with incredible throughput and efficiency.
Floating cities, as common as advertising airships, were a regular sight. In magical civilizations, the concept of cars didn't exist—most people used flying vehicles for transportation.
And everyone knew that no matter how good the flying vehicle, it couldn't match the maneuverability of a sparrow.
At this moment, the airspace over Trivilla was crowded with all kinds of exotic magical birds and beast mounts, along with personal flying carpets and magical wands used for transportation. Law enforcers rode official griffins, constantly flying to maintain order and ensuring the air traffic was well-regulated.
Almost every castle was equipped with various teleportation arrays, some even had crystal trains and magically powered ships for mass transport of cheap goods or to accommodate spell-less civilians.
Leoz was aboard White Candle Star's most advanced civilian magical vehicle, descending toward his destination at a leisurely 300 kilometers per hour.
This vehicle, nicknamed the "Elemental Lantern," was entirely made of structurally stable liquid elemental crystals, arranged in a specific formation. It appeared like an ice crystal—simple and modest in appearance, but extremely sophisticated in craftsmanship. The interior, nourished by liquid elements, provided an extraordinarily comfortable ride.
"Leoz, your answers were flawless, and your aptitude is that of a once-in-a-century genius—you were born to be an elite spellcaster."
Leoz gazed calmly ahead, showing no intention of acknowledging the magic academy teachers surrounding him.
—The vehicle was nice, but it would be even better if the people around him would shut up.
The magic academy recruitment staff, however, didn't want to miss out on Leoz.
He had finished the exam in five minutes—well, to be precise, four minutes and fifty-eight point seventy-four seconds. This record wasn't unheard of; there were even faster times.
But those were from the top-tier Zeta-level individuals.
Yet Leoz, by all tests, was just a Gamma-level mortal.
In cosmic civilizations, there was no concept of Alpha or Beta tiers; these were made up for new civilizations.
In the interstellar community, Gamma-level is the baseline—it denotes mortals with an average lifespan of three to four hundred years, and with enough resources, they could continue advancing.
Gamma-level beings are the basic labor force of the universe. They are not fit for the battlefield of the stars. The cost of training them to develop cosmic warfare skills and execute commands reserved for transcendents, then transporting them to the target location, would be enough to bankrupt anyone.
It's far better for them to live a simple life—screwing bolts, buying houses, getting married, paying taxes, and having children.
Delta-level is considered the starting point for transcendents. Among ordinary people, they can secure a stable income and respectable jobs back home.
Epsilon-level transcendent individuals are more advanced, able to participate in interstellar warfare. They are often found as researchers, in logistics, or in security forces.
Zeta-levels are the backbone of the battlefield, often piloting war machines and engaging in large-scale ground military actions.
Most mercenaries and bounty hunters in the cosmos are Zeta-level, making up the main force of transcendent beings in the universe.
For civilizations just stepping into the stars, Zeta-levels are like gods capable of summoning the wind, but on the interstellar battlefield, Zeta-levels are still cannon fodder with a chance of dying in direct combat.
Eta, Theta, and Iota levels are the progressively advancing war units, similar to tanks, aircraft, and battleships.
By Iota level, individuals become the elite of interstellar warfare, though still expendable and replaceable like fuel.
As for Kappa-level—that is a level reached only upon returning from the Abyss. Above Kappa, one can influence local star-system battles, and every civilization places great emphasis on cultivating such individuals.
Leoz, as a mere mortal, had accomplished what was expected of a Zeta-level being.
His capabilities were beyond question. When his exam results reached the Academy Committee, the entire Trivilla exploded in excitement.
From their perspective, everyone knew Leoz was a rising star.
After a quick meeting, each school sent out its most charismatic teachers to interact with Leoz.
The only problem was that Leoz's aptitude report indicated he excelled in all branches of magic.
This meant that all sixteen of White Candle Star's top-tier magical academies, the highest institutions within the Crystal Tower civilization, were equally suitable for Leoz.
This sparked a frenzy among the schools. Before receiving any official reassignment orders from the Committee, all the schools were offering insane conditions and benefits, hoping to enroll Leoz.
Or rather—inviting Leoz to attend.
Beautiful mentors, influential academic giants, and top-tier celebrity professors—all offered vast resources and materials. Some academies even proposed reopening the long-abandoned master-disciple system exclusively for Leoz's sake.
That "long-abandoned" system had been abandoned for quite some time.
—The last time mages taught students one-on-one, the Tanasi were still in the medieval period.
However, Leoz seemed indifferent to all this.
He said nothing, using telepathic resonance to communicate directly with specific people—according to testimony from certified mages, Leoz had only awakened his mental power seven hours ago.
This extraordinary learning ability greatly excited the magic mentors sent to recruit Leoz.
What did this mean? Leoz was easy to teach!
A fast learner meant less need for teaching resources. Restarting the ancient master-disciple system was more cost-effective, and it could foster Leoz's loyalty.
During the flight to Trivilla, Leoz remained silent, but whenever he had a request, whether it was for a cup of water or to look out the window from 5,000 meters in the air, the magic mentors scrambled to fulfill it, hoping to be remembered by Leoz.
The colder Leoz was, the more attentive the mentors became, treating him like their own child. They had already given him gifts totaling over 300,000 dina.
Leoz didn't do much.
Most of the time, he knelt quietly, meditating alone. The mentors did not disturb him. Leoz confidently extended his mental will, silently communicating with something, sending out a summons.
「Shar Gwenia, bring the apostles.」
「Tuva Hara, your heroic spirits must descend at once.」
「Mega Nybros, get over here.」
「Maggie, Duma, Jitel, Ou Shen, Cronic, Mount—your sins will be set aside for now. Come to me.」
However, only silence answered his call.
He tried uttering names that couldn't be pronounced in a mortal tongue:
「DezFaon, Aalrshia, Guazopx...」
He called out name after name, but no one responded.
Leoz paused for a moment, then emotionlessly called out another name:
「Morphedria.」