Superb Reappears

Viola gave an almost inaudible snort and said, "She's a visiting Wizard from Pallas Floating City. Last year, she came to Longshande with her teacher for a three-year spell exchange at the Wizard Tower. I don't know what happened, but ever since she met me, she's been constantly picking fights with me."

Rayne clicked his tongue. "She's from Pallas Floating City? Then what's her relationship with Duke Redstone?"

"Phyllis's teacher is Duke Redstone's student." When Viola mentioned Duke Redstone, a hint of admiration appeared in her eyes.

Rayne shook his head in amazement. Phyllis was actually Duke Redstone's grand-disciple. No wonder she dared to challenge Viola—she truly had the backing for it.

When it came to Duke Redstone, there was practically no one in the Empire who had not heard of him.

Even beyond the Empire, every intelligent race in the entire Aerenus World had probably heard stories of this legendary figure.

Duke Redstone's full name was Kailstone Kalser. He was one of the Empire's Soul Saint Wizards and a member of the High Council.

This Soul Saint Wizard had set a string of astonishing records.

Not long after his birth, he displayed astonishing innate spiritual power at the age of two. At ten, he underwent the Soul Transformation Ritual, achieved Perfect Soul Transformation, and became a Seal School Wizard.

At twenty-two, he advanced to Legendary, created the Psion profession, and added a new advanced branch to the Seal School. He was also the youngest Legendary Wizard in history.

More than thirty years later, at the age of fifty-eight, he completed his seventh Perfect Soul Transformation and became the youngest Soul Saint Wizard in the Empire's history!

He was also the youngest member of the High Council. He was granted the title of Duke of the Empire and chose Pallas City on the Northern Great Prairie as his territory.

Then, within a century, he gathered countless resources and successfully built his own Floating City.

There were twelve Soul Saint Wizards in the Empire, and every one of them was a duke, yet only seven possessed Floating Cities!

Duke Redstone was already over three hundred years old, and no one had broken his records to this day. No one had even come close.

Perhaps Duke Redstone was not the Empire's strongest Transcendent, nor even its strongest Wizard, but he was universally acknowledged as the greatest genius in human history. Calling him unparalleled throughout the ages would not be an exaggeration.

By comparison, Duke Silverstar had advanced to become a Soul Saint Wizard several decades before Duke Redstone. It was said that he had already been over two hundred at the time, yet even now, he had not built a Floating City and possessed only a Wizard Tower.

Whether in strength or reputation, Duke Redstone was clearly a cut above him.

As Duke Redstone's direct grand-disciple, Phyllis indeed had every reason to be proud. She could practically swagger across the Empire. Pallas Floating City had always been renowned for its wealth, so it was no surprise that she possessed such extravagant equipment.

The moment Rayne heard of Phyllis's background, he roughly guessed why she was always at odds with Viola.

Advanced Tier Wizards were women too. The things that could make a woman jealous were nothing more than wealth, status, fame, strength, and beauty.

Beauty in particular came first, and it was the most likely to stir up a woman's competitive instincts.

In this regard, men were actually much the same. They simply did not usually compare their own looks, instead comparing the beauty of their women...

Phyllis's family background was among the finest in the Empire. She was a genius Wizard, a disciple of humanity's greatest genius, and exceptionally beautiful. She lacked nothing. Whether in Pallas Floating City or elsewhere in the Empire, people would show respect the moment they heard her identity, and she would hear praise wherever she went.

It could be said that there were only a handful of women of her generation in the entire Empire who could rival her in every respect.

Then, after arriving in Longshande, Phyllis met Viola.

Viola was Duke Silverstar's great-granddaughter and a Level 6 Myriad Spirits Wizard. In wealth, status, and fame, she was not much inferior to Phyllis. Each had her own strengths, and they were evenly matched—except in beauty, where Viola surpassed her by far.

The beauty of Moon Elves was well known to all, and Viola had inherited her mother's finest qualities. Even among the Moon Elves, it would be difficult to find an Elf who could compare to her.

Phyllis was also a rare beauty, but beside Viola, she seemed somewhat dimmed. The two were not even on the same level.

Any man with normal taste would undoubtedly favor Viola.

A woman accustomed to being adored by men could easily lose her balance and develop intense jealousy after suffering such a severe blow if she failed to adjust her emotions in time.

Phyllis was probably like that. So, by flaunting her wealth, she tried to steal Viola's spotlight.

The behavior was childish, but it had indeed affected Viola.

At the very least, the profits from today's trade fair would take a hit.

Rayne looked at Viola. There was a trace of helplessness on her face. Clearly, she understood everything, but because of Phyllis's identity and status, she had not exposed it.

Phyllis could disregard her dignity and act this way, but ordinary people truly could not afford to offend her.

The trade fair continued, but many guests kept gathering around Phyllis to inquire about the Frostfire Ring and admire the rare Supreme Tier ring. As a result, the number of transactions visibly declined.

Rayne saw a faint red tint appear in Viola's soul color and knew she was angry.

But he could not think of any solution.

So he joked in a low voice, "How about throwing her out?"

"If you're not afraid of offending a Legendary Wizard or the people of Pallas Floating City, then go ahead." Viola rolled her eyes at Rayne in a distinctly unladylike manner. Yet it made him feel as though his soul had been stolen by beauty, as if his bones had lost several pounds and he might float away.

Rayne shrank back. He was only a First-Level Wizard. Even if he had the guts of a demon leopard, he would not dare!

Scoundrels were annoying enough. Female scoundrels with powerful backers were even more of a headache...

The two spoke with several guests for a while longer. Rayne got to know two Transcendents and was beginning to feel hungry. Just as he was about to grab something to eat, another commotion broke out around Phyllis.

The surrounding guests immediately crowded over.

Rayne and Viola exchanged a glance. There was no hope of making much money from this trade fair tonight.

As the host, Viola had no choice but to go over.

As soon as they approached, they heard a man say, "Lady Phyllis, my Mountain Giant Demon Soul is not worth much less than your Frostfire Ring. It may even be worth more. You'll need to compensate me with some Gold Shields."

"A Mountain Giant Demon Soul!"

Rayne and Viola were both shaken. Someone actually wanted to trade with Phyllis.

They entered the crowd and saw an ordinary-looking man speaking with Phyllis. He was thin, with a cold and aloof temperament. A chill seemed to radiate faintly from beneath his pale blue Mage Robe.

He was probably a Bloodline Sorcerer who had fused with an ice-type bloodline. No wonder he wanted the Frostfire Ring.

Rayne activated Soul Eye to confirm it. Sure enough, he was an Ice Sorcerer. His profession level was not low either—Level 7, making him a High-Tier Warlock.

But what drew the most attention was the Soul Stone in his hand.

This Soul Stone was unusual. It was half again as large as an ordinary Soul Stone and was probably not made from white crystal, but some more precious gemstone that could preserve the contained Demon Soul for longer.

The Soul Stone was earth-yellow. If not for its mirror-smooth surface, it would have looked no different from a river pebble.

Within it, an unusual Demon Soul flickered.

Mountain Giants were an extremely powerful species. Even an immature one was equivalent to a human Advanced Tier Transcendent.

A Giant Demon Soul would contain at least one enhanced Strength Element. If it came from an adult Giant, it would be even more formidable. Possessing four or five Elements would not be unusual, and such souls had always been highly sought after.

For melee Transcendents in particular, a Giant's soul was an excellent Secondary Soul that could greatly improve physical attributes.

It was perfectly normal for an Advanced Tier Giant Demon Soul to sell for several thousand Gold Shields.

"Sorry, but a Giant Demon Soul alone isn't enough. I don't want to trade with you." Phyllis took one glance, then withdrew her gaze.

She had little interest in this Demon Soul. As a Seal Wizard, she could not fuse Demon Souls, and she did not want to sell the Frostfire Ring in the first place.

"Is that so?" The Ice Sorcerer was unconcerned. He swept his gaze over the crowd before saying lightly, "My Mountain Giant Demon Soul contains Earthquake Pulse. Will you trade now?"

"What?"

"Earthquake Pulse!"

"This Demon Soul actually contains a Superb Element!"

The moment the Ice Sorcerer finished speaking, the hall erupted in an uproar. Everyone was moved, staring fixedly at the Soul Stone in his hand.

Everyone thought the same thing: today had truly been an eye-opener. First there was a Supreme Tier Enchanting Ring, and now there was a Giant Demon Soul containing a Superb Element!

Even Phyllis's expression changed drastically. Like everyone else, she could not help carefully examining the Soul Stone in his hand.

Earthquake Pulse was an incredibly famous Superb Element!

The Church of the Earth Mother, one of the Empire's Three Gods Church of the Empire, had a special Transcendent profession called Earth Nun. The core of this profession was built around a series of Elements related to Earthquake Pulse.

Earth Nuns were all human women. Their first core Element was called Earth Spring, a rare Supernatural Element.

Earth Spring granted the nuns numerous abilities.

As long as both feet stood on the ground, or any part of their bodies touched the earth, it could enhance physical strength, slow fatigue, accelerate Endurance recovery, make the skin more Tenacious, grant Earth Element affinity, provide high resistance to earth spells, and increase the power of earth spells!

One Element was equivalent to possessing four or five Elements at once!

If not for the restriction that they had to remain in contact with the earth, Earth Spring alone would have been enough to qualify as a Superb Element.

However, after the nuns underwent multiple Soul Transformations, Earth Spring could advance into Earthquake Pulse.

Earthquake Pulse was a fully enhanced version of Earth Spring. As long as one stood upon the ground, strength, Endurance, recovery, defense, resistance, and spellcasting would all be greatly enhanced. It also granted an additional tactile perception that allowed one to grasp the movements of nearby targets through vibrations in the ground.

Nuns with Earthquake Pulse were all fearless super warriors!

As a Superb Element, Earthquake Pulse stood alongside Body of Steel. It might have been even more famous.

But that was not all. Earthquake Pulse could continue to advance into its ultimate enhanced form, Heart of Earth!

Heart of Earth allowed one to directly draw life force from the earth without end. It no longer required contact with the ground and granted immunity to all earth spells.

With Heart of Earth, one practically possessed an Immortal Body. That was why it was a Legendary Element!

What kind of Demon Soul Earth Nuns fused to obtain Earth Spring was the Church of the Earth Mother's deepest secret. No outsider knew.

However, the higher-tier Earthquake Pulse had several possible sources.

Mountain Giants, who were naturally able to wield earth spells, indeed had a certain chance of possessing Earthquake Pulse. Many people had heard of it.

They simply had not expected that this Ice Sorcerer possessed one.

If what he said was true, then this Giant Demon Soul was indeed worth more than the Frostfire Ring, and by no small amount.

Viola's eyes lit up. If she could facilitate this transaction, today's trade fair would make a fortune.

Just as she was about to step forward to oversee the trade, Rayne gently caught her arm. When she turned back, she saw him shake his head imperceptibly, his lips moving to form a silent word.

"There's a trick."