Bai Shi led Sellen to the very edge of the roof. Only then did Sellen realize she had embraced him a bit too soon, inwardly scolding herself for her absentmindedness. Bai Shi picked his spot, confirming the structural integrity of the building beneath his feet before simply leaping off. He caught the eave with one hand, leaving himself dangling outside the room's window. This room was a separate, jutting structure, detached from the Church of the Cuckoo. Only a single covered walkway connected it to the main church building. Through the rain-streaked, blurry window, Bai Shi could see the floor of the room was covered in pale purple glintstone crystals. At its heart, right in the center of the room, was a Graven-Mass—a sphere formed from countless sorcerer glintstone crowns, grotesquely enlarged and fused together. These glintstone crowns had once belonged to individual sorcerers. The sorcerers of the Primeval Current used a special secret art, removing the heads of sorcerers while preserving their intellect. However, this particular Graven-Mass was long dead, devoid of any life. So even though the countless eyes upon its surface had already seen Bai Shi and Sellen, it showed no reaction. Bai Shi didn’t rush inside, choosing to observe the situation first. In the connecting walkway stood a guard, armed with a crossbow and a sword. However, the guard was looking into the Church of the Cuckoo, his back turned to Bai Shi and Sellen. Clearly, he never imagined someone would try to infiltrate the church through a window. This room had likely not been a classroom or the chamber for this Graven-Mass originally. It was too remote, far too distant from the main academy. It was probably where the Graven-Mass was imprisoned after its research into the Primeval Current was discovered by the other sorcerers. Feeling the magical aura within the room, Sellen nodded. "There's no mistaking it, my apprentice. That sorcerer was one of the practitioners of the Primeval Current." "I can feel the magic of my master—Master Azur—around him." "He turned himself into this... this Graven-Mass... all to comprehend the Primeval Current sorcery contained within it." Bai Shi looked at Sellen. "Master, does studying Primeval Current sorcery always lead to... that?" Sellen pondered for a moment, then smiled and said to Bai Shi: "Studying a Graven-Mass, or even turning oneself into one, is merely a means to an end." "A true master doesn't need such methods to find their own unique Primeval Current." Bai Shi studied Sellen's smile and saw it for what it was—a strained attempt to reassure him. Master Sellen was still considering doing just that. It made sense. After all, if they truly found the bodies of Master Azur and Master Lusat, fusing with them could elevate her to an unprecedented level of power. Sellen quickly changed the subject, not wanting Bai Shi to press further. She looked at the guard with his back to them and said to Bai Shi: "We need to find a way to deal with that guard inside, or our infiltration will be discovered." Bai Shi glanced at Sellen. "Master, while I did want to sneak in, it was just for fun." "If a situation truly calls for it, we don't have to stick to stealth." Sellen smiled warmly at Bai Shi. "I'm no spoilsport, Master. Since my apprentice wants to have some fun, let's keep playing." "I am more than happy to play along with you." Bai Shi felt a wave of emotion. Master Sellen truly doted on her apprentice. Having a teacher like her was truly a blessing. Bai Shi looked at the guard, thought for a moment, and asked Sellen: "Master, does it ever thunder when it rains at the academy?" Bai Shi’s question caught Sellen by surprise. She began to think carefully. After a while, she gave Bai Shi her answer: "I don't know. I've never paid attention." "I doubt anyone else at the academy pays attention to that sort of thing either." "While I know the weather here is magically controlled, and I've tried to study it," "the spell matrix that controls the weather is completely under the Carian royal family's control. No one else has any idea how it works." "So even if it's never thundered here before, I doubt anyone would find a sudden clap of thunder strange." Bai Shi nodded, a plan forming in his mind. Sellen looked at him and asked: "What is it, apprentice? Do you have an idea?" Bai Shi fixed his gaze on the distant guard in the walkway and said to his teacher: "Master, I'll leave it to you to take him out with magic in a moment. Just coordinate with my actions." "...Master, you might have to cast with one hand. Will that be a problem while you're holding onto me?" Although Sellen didn't know what Bai Shi was planning, eliminating an enemy with magic was her specialty. "You can rest assured." "My physical body may be weak, but I'm not so feeble that I'd fall off just by holding on with one hand." "Besides, you'll still have an arm around me, won't you?" "My sorcery will not disappoint you." With a surge of strength from his left hand gripping the eave, Bai Shi pulled himself and Sellen back up onto the roof. He then retrieved a Smithing Stone [1] from his spatial disc. The Ancient Dragon Seal in his hand flared with brilliant lightning, imbuing the stone with electricity. Bai Shi took aim at the far side of the Church of the Cuckoo and hurled the Smithing Stone with all his might. The stone skipped across the church rooftop, just as Bai Shi had predicted, and landed precisely in the cemetery filled with slumbering sorcerers. Bai Shi could remotely sense the lightning seal on the Smithing Stone; its position was perfect, and the seal was still active. It was time. With an arm around Master Sellen, Bai Shi returned to his position outside the window. "Master, are you ready?" "Hmph, let's get this started." The Ancient Dragon Seal in Bai Shi's hand lit up once more. Orange-yellow light flickered within the dark clouds that blanketed the sky, the source of the unending rain. In the next moment, several terrifying bolts of lightning ripped down from the clouds, instantly tearing through the sky above the academy. As the thunder roared, capturing the attention of every sorcerer in the church, Bai Shi kicked in the window before him. He shielded Master Sellen with his own body as he jumped into the room, protecting her delicate form from any flying shards of glass. Because of his proximity, the guard in the walkway, his back to them, heard the faint sound of shattering glass over the peal of thunder. But by the time he turned to check on the noise, two spiraling, intertwined glintstone projectiles were already upon him. These were the spiraling glintstone pebbles of the Carian classroom. Both pebbles struck the guard simultaneously—one shattering his head, the other piercing his chest. As his body was torn apart, he was given no chance to even make a sound. Bai Shi and Master Sellen had already landed softly, stepping into the small, crystal-covered room. Sellen released her hold on Bai Shi, handed him back his staff, and walked toward the Graven-Mass. Amidst the glintstone crystals in front of the sphere, a brilliant, emerald-green staff stood embedded. Sellen pulled the staff from the pile of glintstone crystals, cradling it in her hands and examining it carefully. After a moment, Master Sellen finally spoke, her voice filled with nostalgia. "There's no mistaking it. This is Master Azur's Glintstone Staff." "Heh, I imagine those fools in the academy now don't even have a single sorcerer capable of wielding it, which is why they left it here." Then, Sellen turned to Bai Shi with a wide grin. "See, apprentice? I told you we didn't need to bring a staff, that we'd find one in the academy~" "And this one is steeped in history." "It belonged to your teacher's teacher, Master Azur, the academy's greatest sorcerer." "Sigh, I never had the chance to use this staff before. To think I'd be using it now..." Back when she was a student at the academy, though hailed as a prodigy, Sellen was still far from being worthy of using the masters' staves. Only after Master Azur was imprisoned and she resolved to walk the path of the Primeval Current did she truly earn the right to wield it. And yet, looking at the staff she had once yearned for, Sellen couldn't bring herself to feel happy. After disposing of the guard's body, Bai Shi came over to take a look as well. He had already obtained Master Lusat's Glintstone Staff. Comparing them now, he could see that the two masters' staves were utterly different. Master Lusat's staff was incredibly plain, little more than a stone shaft with a cluster of deep blue glintstones embedded at the top as a focus. In stark contrast to Lusat's unadorned staff, Master Azur's was dazzling. This staff was crafted from a single, exceptionally brilliant, eye-catching piece of emerald glintstone crystal. Its form was smooth and slender, with only a few jutting crystals at its crown. Its thinnest point, the middle section, was wrapped in cloth to serve as a comfortable grip. This staff was far more aesthetically pleasing than Master Lusat's. Perhaps this was a reflection of how Master Azur was more "human" than Master Lusat. Though both masters were equally obsessed with Primeval Current sorcery and were both imprisoned by the academy, there was no doubt that Master Azur understood politics better and had a more human touch. Master Lusat was locked away in a sunless cave, sealed behind a special ward. Master Azur's prison, however, was far more lax—an open-air environment where he could even see the stars. His conditions were much better than Master Lusat's. For origınal chapters go to 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✶𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✶𝕟𝕖𝕥 Furthermore, the fact that Master Azur could leave his staff behind in the academy under such circumstances was a testament to his influence. Sellen gave Azur's Glintstone Staff a few gentle swings and laughed with delight. "This is perfect. I've now obtained the best and most suitable staff for me in this academy." "Apprentice, now it's time to deal with those despicable sorcerers..."