The Mage's Creed

The search team led by Kang De was officially named the "Germany Temporary Special Operations Corps for Investigating the Disappearance of the Dragon Clan Mission".

Kang De simply referred to them as the "Survey Corps".

It was actually adopted and recognized by Goth's official authorities, and the name was used in administrative documents and orders issued to the provincial and municipal governments along the route.

This is the Survey Corps' logistics supply and central command base, used to coordinate supplies, mobilize personnel, and issue orders. Now it has a new function.

That is to conduct magical research and mystical analysis.

In a specially designated, isolated area, isolated from the outside world by Holy Radiance Runes and magical barriers, and sealed off by the Sun Artifact, the level of protection here is comparable to that of Earth's top biochemical laboratories. Houses forged from Celestial Alloy serve as mysterious laboratories, heavily guarded with the highest level of vigilance.

Inside the laboratory, everyone present wore heavy protective robes, completely isolating them from any internal or external exchange. They used light runes to defend against erosion and resist curses. Inside, a jar of Life Vine Seeds activated by Druid's hyper-activation spell techniques, combined with Holy Radiance Stones, rapidly carried out photosynthesis and converted oxygen.

Even the crystals in the goggles are made from natural Seven Radiance Crystal, which have the function of blocking mental power to prevent unpredictable mental attacks from invading the brain through the eyes, the window to the soul.

The entire body was fully protected.

Kang De glanced at the gloves through the chip. The gloves were thicker than the rest of his clothes, and there were blood-red words tattooed on the back and palm of his hands. He had just recently learned those words.

"Touch with caution".

"We must not be careless."

Just as the comprehensive safety regulations in all walks of life in modern society were actually born from countless tragic stories and heavy losses, which led to later generations summarizing bloody lessons and rules... today's fully armed, meticulously prepared, and vigilant state is built on the foundation of countless heavy and terrible disasters. The other world is even less safe than Earth.

Then he heard a deep voice. "Your Highness, Your Highness Kang De, gentlemen, please look."

The research was led by the Dean of Academic Affairs of a prestigious university in Danfeng Lucerne, who had met Kang De several times and was an expert in the field of mystery exploration.

In this investigation, Goth and Tina crammed all the top figures they could muster into the Survey Corps, regardless of whether they would actually be of any use. This move was highly deliberate; besides valuing the operation, they probably also intended to have these top figures from Goth work alongside Kang De to enhance their understanding of him.

Now it has actually come in handy.

The spellcaster touched the emblem pendant on his chest. The Rashid's Stone at the center of the emblem was filled with Magic Power, providing a protective shield for the wearer's soul.

Then, the mage's eyes lit up with Arcane light, and his hands touched the two brass hemispheres on the control panel in front of him. The next moment, two alchemical mechanical arms unfolded on the test platform sealed by the reinforced crystal. Their joints and bones were no different from those of humans. They waved in the air a few times, turned left and right, and made several complex gestures.

"Mental link successful." The apprentice on the other side stared intently at a crystal. "The transfer stone is of normal color; no signs of foreign mental energy erosion have been detected."

Kang De could probably understand that the cautious mages avoided direct contact with the samples, and using their mental abilities was not a good choice either, because it meant direct contact with spiritual power, which still carried the risk of the soul being corrupted and infected... So they used their mental power to manipulate the alchemical mechanical arm to conduct experiments.

However, still fearing that unknown, mysterious forces might physically infect the alchemical mechanical arm and then mentally infect it through the soul connection between the mage and the mechanical arm, they created an intermediary to establish a mental connection between the mage, the transfer soul stone, and the mechanical arm.

Soulstones have a unique characteristic: they change color when they encounter spiritual energy. If more than one spiritual force passes through a soulstone at the same time, it will display a different color than before. This is a terrible warning, meaning that an unfamiliar spiritual force is passing through the sample and is being transmitted to the caster in reverse.

The participants can immediately use the instructions in the emergency treatment manual to protect and save themselves.

That's really a lot of effort.

How many mages were tortured to death to develop so many sophisticated techniques...?

As the thought raced through his mind, the robotic arm reached out towards the experimental sample.

Those were the remains of several monsters that had sprung up from the ground. Before sealing the underground cave, at Stella's urgent request, a few were left out and were quickly contained by the bio-engineering team that arrived later.

"The samples we obtained fall into two categories. First, the remains of the mutated birds that attacked the two reconnaissance mages; second, the corpse of the nameless monster that burst out of the underground cave and directly clashed with Prince Kang De. Based on the eyewitness testimonies of the two mages and Prince Kang De's time-travel footage, these two completely different creatures share many commonalities."

An invisible wind blade extended from the index finger of the robotic arm and began to cut through the wreckage. "Firstly, they are all aggressive, fearless, and unafraid of danger, having lost their survival instincts as living beings."

Secondly...

The wind blade sliced through the flesh, revealing the bizarre muscle, blood vessel, and skeletal structure inside. Even though Kang De's biological knowledge was limited to high school level and he had forgotten most of it, he could immediately see the enormous irrationality and strangeness of this creature's body structure.

"Muscles completely torn apart, bones twisted, blood vessels bursting—this wasn't trauma from an attack, but rather its state before death. If a creature's body structure exhibited this condition, I could confidently assert that it was an immobile mass of rotten flesh, destined to die from a heart bursting at any moment. Yet this creature didn't die; instead, it used its sharp claws to climb the cave walls, advancing and leaping at a speed of twenty to thirty meters per second, biting and slashing—this is completely illogical."

The spellcaster gazed at the lines of broken muscle and said calmly, "My teacher taught me that things that defy common sense are the mysteries that mages seek."

"And that's what mystery is."

The mechanical claw snatched a bloody chunk of flesh from the dissected corpse.

Green fluid, dripping blood, and liquid tissue continued to drip out, shimmering with purple stardust, each speckling with an eerie glow.

"We discovered the same mysterious energy in the bird remains, appearing purple with extremely high energy density. We determined it to be a heterogeneous corrosive energy, a biologically infectious type, a destructive corrosive that can completely alter the bodily functions and life structure of the infected, posing a great threat, and moreover..."

The caster used their mental power to open the base of the experimental platform, raising another skeleton—a relatively complete bird skeleton. "Also corrupted by alien energy, this bird's infection level is far less than that of the nameless monster. It must have been infected recently, hence the internal parasitic mutation."

"In terms of the degree of infection alone, the nameless monster underground is clearly more perfect. It can be said that its entire body is completely infected, achieving a completely new balance and state, becoming a ferocious Predator..."

"This indicates that they have been affected and infected over a long period of time, meaning that this energy has existed for a relatively long time, rather than falling from the sky in just a few days."

Oh, that startled me.

I thought it was an explosion on the Tiber River that brought Tiberium to the world.

Upon hearing this, Kang De and Stella exchanged a glance.

It's safe now.

This added even more weight to the burden placed on the dragons.

Damn it, no, maybe they really were the ones who did it.

Hold.

The sorcerer continued explaining, "We have managed to extract this substance and conducted various elemental sequencing and mystical tests. Comparing it to the alien invasion atlas revised by the Arcane Council this February, the results do not conform to any of the categories. Your Highnesses, we have reason to believe that this is a new type of alien energy that has never appeared in the history records of this planet before..."

Stella's face fell, and she turned her head slightly away, refusing to look at Kang De's face.

The spellcaster was completely unaware. Scholars also have a desire to express themselves and perform, but their research fields are too profound for ordinary people to understand. They can only talk to their peers.

And for this spellcaster, what better listener could there be than His Highness Kang De, Forbidden Spell magician, a great alchemist, and recently discovered to have considerable expertise in space and soul?

Although he was explaining, it was practically indistinguishable from an academic presentation.

"I must admit that although this new corrosive energy is extremely dangerous, it possesses incredible properties. Regarding the prototype or true form of this mutated nameless monster, we were preparing to request Danfeng Lucerne to send druids with high expertise in zoology to study it. However, it can now be confirmed that the new alien energy has turned this creature into a terrifying killing machine."

"This energy makes the infected, nameless monsters bloodthirsty, violent, and highly aggressive, greatly enhancing their offensive capabilities. Their original bodily functions have been completely destroyed, but the perfect combination of their damaged bodies and this energy grants them new strength, greater speed, incredible mobility, sturdy armor, and sharp claws..."

The monk looked up at Kang De: "You should have noticed this."

Phoenix Flame flashed in Kang De's eyes, and the Element perception power of the Fire Thief also made a discovery.

"The claws, teeth, and even the carapace on its body have been specifically enhanced."

In the eyes of the Fire Thief, this predator, its lower body shattered by bullets and still ferociously lurking on the experimental table, possessed mysterious Element arranged and functioning in a complex manner: teeth in its open mouth, claws extended from its powerful forelimbs, and layers of expansive carapace on its back.

This means... he can learn and replicate.

"That's right."

The spellcaster said, "Moreover, the enhancement effect is astonishing. Even without any processing, the sharpness and armor-piercing capabilities of these claws are comparable to the most advanced weaponry. The carapace can even withstand magical attacks. We haven't conducted further research yet, but the alchemists have already made some speculations..."

At this point, the mage took a deep breath and said, "Perhaps this energy can spontaneously imbue the infected parts of a organism with an enchantment-like effect, but the process is far from pleasant..."

Kang De thought for a moment, "In other words, we can establish an absolutely safe pasture, continuously feed animals into it, let this energy infect and erode it, and then harvest it periodically, collecting the enhanced body parts of these animals to forge weapons, armor, or even machinery?"

The spellcaster was taken aback at first, then exclaimed in surprise, "I never thought I could do that!"

He then came to his senses and shook his head, saying, "No, there is no absolutely safe place. Even if there were, people would become complacent over time, leading to huge safety accidents..."

"Furthermore, Your Excellency, the ability to infect living beings and enhance their body parts... is actually nothing special."

The monk's tone became solemn and serious as he slowly exhaled.

"That's why there are only four of us here now. My student participated in my last experiment; he was aware of it. My idea is that, at least for now, there shouldn't be more than four people aware of it."

"Please look, gentlemen."

Arcane fire blazed in the mage's eyes. Within the sealed experimental table, elements were slowly gathering, and a small Light Spell was gradually taking shape. This illumination spell was one of the essential skills for mages and also the most popular exploration skill. Its effect was to create a small light source that floated around the mage, illuminating everything.

This ball of light was generated in the testing platform, right next to that organization filled with mysterious energy.

The next moment, both Kang De and Stella saw the group of organisms release purple mist and merge into the spell model of the Light Spell.

Then, the ball of light instantly blazed brightly, and the intensity of the light increased several times in an instant.

Stella's expression suddenly changed. "What did you do?"

"As you can see, I simply cast a normal Light Spell." A hint of unease flickered in the mage's calm tone. "And this exotic energy amplified the spell's effect on its own."

"In other words."

He turned to look at Stella, and then at Kang De: "This mysterious energy, which has never appeared in history books or records, is a natural magical amplifier for spellcasters."

"For a magic circle, it's a long-lasting, rechargeable pool of Magic Power."

"For magical devices, it's an overload button with no side effects..."

The monk lowered his eyes and said softly, "You know what I want to say."

But it is also a terrible poison that erodes living things and mutates life.

Stella's gaze momentarily drifted off.

Kang De's gaze suddenly sharpened. "Have you ever used it?"

Damn, it's Originium.

Meeting Kang De's gaze, the other person replied frankly, "No, Your Highness. Perhaps my power is insignificant compared to yours, but I still maintain the noble spirit of a spellcaster, remaining restrained, cautious, careful, and composed, always remembering the lessons of my predecessors and the creed of a mage."

"I will always remember the words inscribed in the Explorer's Hall of the Arcane Council."

The first point: Mystery and magic don't come for free.

"The second sentence—on the extraordinary path of exploring the essence of the world, what mages often pay is not effort, but..." the spellcaster said slowly, "... a price."

"I believe you didn't, Your Excellency, because I remember a story you told me during my first Arcane lesson." Stella snapped out of her reverie and gently tugged at Kang De.

The other person laughed, "Yes, Your Highness, if one day you found a staff that could grant you endless Magic Power, what would you do?"

Stella's tone held a hint of amusement. "Report to the Arcane Council immediately and contain it."

Because mystery and magic are not free.

Born from another dimension, with a long history, and appearing in the present world through various means, so-called divine artifacts, the voices of ancient powerful beings, the enlightenment of destiny... Mages who are addicted to these temptations and traps are stripped of their bodies, have their souls extracted, are exiled, tortured, driven mad, broken, and degenerate. Countless lessons have become lessons for those who come after. The mage's creed consists of only two words.

Careful.

"I have conducted a preliminary analysis and assessment of this unknown energy and have reached significant conclusions. My tasks as spellcaster and researcher are complete. Now it is time for the political arena to move forward. My apprentice and I will remain in seclusion until the two, or even the Grand Duke, make a decision."

The other person bowed deeply. "But please be careful, Goth stands at the crossroads of history."

"Thank you for your contributions to this country," Stella returned the greeting. "Your Excellency Ferndit, my teacher, please allow me to once again request your guidance and advice. Do you have any suggestions?"

"This entirely new type of alien energy should have been immediately reported to the Arcane Council for emergency containment and disposal by the executives of the Life Safety Department..."

The mage's voice was also filled with unease. "But the Arcane Council is not a powerful agency completely detached from the nations; it is still subject to the interests and positions of each country. This power is unprecedented and unheard of, and its significance is so profound that it could even alter the balance of power among nations and trigger a new round of power reshuffling. I don't know if the Arcane Council can continue to tolerate and suppress it as before, or..."

It was still divided up, studied, and used by various countries for military expansion.

Stella, of course, understood this as well.

She whispered, "No wonder those dragons went into the cave..."

This kind of thing would be incredibly tempting for dragons too... especially for those dragons who dream of making their race great again...

There are usually only two ways to handle this kind of situation.

First, make a fortune quietly.

Second, report to international organizations for containment.

Whether the latter can maintain a neutral and detached stance in the face of this new form of energy with enormous potential and profound significance remains to be seen. If not, and the news leaks out, it will not be good news for Goth. Everyone understands the principle that "a common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime."

As for the former...

Who can guarantee that this isn't a gift from the devil?

The second princess stood frozen for a moment, then said softly, "I need to think about it carefully, we need to think about it carefully..."

"Yes."

The two changed out of their protective gear and went through twelve disinfection and purification procedures before leaving. The experiment on the sample had been stopped, and the researcher had indeed sealed himself inside. Stella breathed in the outside air; there was no one around. She remained silent for a moment, then turned to look at Kang De.

"You were right, it's a completely new type of energy," she said. "What are your thoughts?"

Kang De thought for a moment, then bowed and said, "Thank you for your kind words."

Stella was taken aback at first, then she understood.

Kang De previously suggested it might be a completely new type of energy, one not recorded in the Arcane Council, a claim he confidently dismissed. He had previously stated that the probability of it being a completely new and exotic energy was as small as the probability of a goddess falling from the sky and being won over by Kang De in a single day...

--And then this guy said, "Thank you for your kind words?"

What does that mean?

Do you have any complaints about my Tina?

Even the Phoenix King can't satisfy you?

He really thinks he's a Casanova? Pshaw!

Her eyebrows furrowed, and she snapped, "What kind of time is this to be daydreaming? And you're still taking my good wishes for granted? You really think the goddess will fall in love with you? What a joke! If the goddess could fall in love with you, I would..."

The next moment, a fiery red shadow flashed from the front. Ah Xing leaped over in a few steps, jumped up, and hugged Kant, clinging to him. "Kant, Kant, why were you gone for so long!"

Kang De was hit by two headlights, which made him very uncomfortable.

He pulled his head out forcefully and asked Stella, "And what about you?"

￥￥￥￥￥￥￥￥￥

PS1: Ah, to be honest, the concept of Originium is similar to Tiberium...