Mark Fluctuations

Inside an Earth Bud flower bud roughly three meters beneath the soil, Green held a medium-grade magic stone in his hand to recover his magic power while also studying how to control the fluctuations of the mark on his forehead.

Through constant study, Green discovered something.

Normally, if he had spent even the slightest bit of magic power and had not replenished it, the fluctuations of his mark would be like a blazing sun within a hundred-meter radius, constantly warning every wizard apprentice within that range.

But if Green's magic power was kept full at all times, and he stayed motionless in one place without making any movement, while also producing no magic fluctuations at all, then the mark fluctuations would completely withdraw into his body, just like a wizard apprentice who had not obtained any points.

And as long as Green made even the slightest movement, even if it was only walking, the mark fluctuations would radiate out.

However, at that time, both the range and intensity of the mark fluctuations were much smaller, roughly the strength of ten points of mark fluctuation within thirty meters.

If magic fluctuations appeared inside Green's body at that moment, no matter how faint they were, thirty-point mark fluctuations would instantly erupt within a thirty-meter range around Green. And when Green began to lose magic power, that diameter would instantly spread to a hundred-meter range.

Having figured out how to control the mark fluctuations, Green calculated the time. It was finally almost time for the first batch of secret realms to open.

No longer wasting time, Green knocked on the Earth Bud. After a burst of shaking, the soil above his head loosened, and the giant flower bud drilled out of the ground and opened, revealing Green inside.

He dripped one drop from a potion bottle onto the giant flower bud. After the Earth Bud trembled, it began shrinking at a speed visible to the naked eye. A moment later, it had once again become an utterly unremarkable seed.

Putting away the seed, Green carefully controlled his mark fluctuations and walked toward a high ground within his line of sight.

However, even if the mark fluctuations only had a range of thirty meters and an intensity of ten points, he was still someone many wizard apprentices avoided. Green did not see a single wizard apprentice at all.

The thirty-meter and hundred-meter ranges mentioned here were only approximate figures. There was still some radiating force beyond the range; the specifics depended on the other party's sensing ability.

Gradually, the setting sun sank westward.

When he estimated that night would fall in another half hourglass, Green sensed two rather strong magic fluctuations.

One was roughly a thousand meters away beside him, while the other seemed to be around three or four thousand meters away.

Occupying the high ground, Green looked through the dense forest toward the nearest magic fluctuation he had sensed. It seemed that some faint, inexplicable change had occurred there. Part of the forest had been pushed down, and at the same time, beastlike roars that seemed utterly devoid of reason drifted over vaguely.

"The secret realm has opened."

Green was somewhat excited. While working hard to control his mark fluctuations, he moved as quickly as possible toward the secret realm closest to him, hoping to seize the reward within it.

Of course, it would be even better if he could accumulate some more marks along the way.

With the opening of the secret realm, the people scattered across the vast trial grounds finally began to gather, all converging toward the place where the secret realm had opened.

Along the way, Green also encountered several wizard apprentices who were likewise rushing toward the secret realm. However, these people were all quite cautious. After seeing Green, they would not approach at all, and Green was unwilling to mobilize magic power to catch up to them.

Just like that, everyone rushed toward one gathering place after another within a relatively safe environment.

A moment later, Green finally arrived at the secret realm closest to him. But when Green saw this so-called secret realm, a disappointed expression appeared on his face.

"This shabby?"

That was right. The so-called secret realm opened in the first wave was actually just a house that looked fairly luxuriously decorated. It could not be called a secret realm at all.

The only thing that still drew some attention was that a giant tree over thirty meters tall grew in front of the house, and every branch was like an arm, like a vine whip, intimidating any wizard apprentice who wanted to approach.

All told, more than thirty people had already gathered in front of this secret realm at this time, and in the distance, wizard apprentices could faintly be seen still hurrying over.

This giant tree had a mouth the size of a table, and its entire huge maw was filled with cold, savage fangs as it chewed the corpse of a wizard apprentice it had just killed.

The beastlike roaring Green had faintly heard from afar had probably come from that huge mouth.

And the branch-arms of this strange giant tree seemed to possess extremely great strength and toughness. Ordinary wizard apprentices could not cause much damage to them at all. Yet when these arms coiled around someone, they were a nightmare-like attack for wizard apprentices.

"This is a Labrador Nightmare Tree. It's said that normally, it's no different from an ordinary giant tree, only it needs to feed once every hundred years. If it doesn't receive enough flesh and blood, the Labrador Nightmare Tree will never become a true giant-tree form. It will forever remain a flesh-eating monster."

A wizard apprentice who seemed quite knowledgeable shouted this.

"Blood food? Where are we supposed to get blood food for it now? Just now it swallowed a full three wizard apprentices and still showed no sign of being full."

A wizard apprentice said with an ugly expression.

At this time, among the more than thirty wizard apprentices in the vast field, two were clearly the strongest. The mark fluctuations of both these two had already reached the level of ten people, and each had two or three helpers beside them. No wizard apprentice dared provoke these two small groups at all.

The rest had all come alone while guarding against one another. Only a very few had arrived in teams.

"Where to get blood food? Haha, don't we have plenty of blood food right here?"

At this moment, a male wizard apprentice with ten-person mark fluctuations spoke.

This wizard apprentice looked only fifteen or sixteen years old, with a rather immature face. His voice seemed to still be in the period of adolescent change, but his nature was already quite cruel.

After he finished speaking, this wizard apprentice looked toward the other female wizard apprentice present who had ten-person mark fluctuations.

The female wizard apprentice rode on a giant bear formed from earth element. Her eyes flickered, but she did not answer, as if she still had not made up her mind to try killing other wizard apprentices here to feed the Labrador Nightmare Tree.

Green watched quietly from a distance. He did not rashly walk over, waiting for an opportunity.

Just then, a wizard apprentice with a simple varicolored invisibility spell could no longer hold back. He actually cast the spell directly and ran toward the secret realm, ignoring that terrifying Labrador Nightmare Tree altogether.

At first, everyone merely sneered, thinking he was a fellow delivering blood food. But the next scene left everyone dumbstruck.

That wizard apprentice's crude and simple disguise spell had actually really passed by the Labrador Nightmare Tree, allowing him to enter the house.

A moment later, a faint spatial fluctuation came from within the house. It seemed there was a teleportation device inside the secret realm, which had safely teleported that wizard apprentice away.

Even Green could not help freezing for a moment, before his eyes turned cold.

The secret-realm reward that had been as good as in his bag had actually been snatched away one step ahead of him, right under his nose. How could that not make him furious?

Suddenly, Green seemed to think of something else. Looking at the house that had not disappeared, he said in surprise, "Could it be that the secret realm rewards more than one person?"

"Ah... Bastard! That bastard! He actually stole the magic-guiding sorcerer artifact that belonged to me!"

The male wizard apprentice whose Ten-Person Mark fluctuations were nearly driven mad in his fury looked toward the wavering female wizard apprentice not far away. "If you still can't make up your mind, then don't blame me for being rude!"

Gritting her teeth, the female wizard apprentice riding atop the giant earth-element bear gave a cold shout. "Kill!"

Receiving her answer, the adolescent male wizard apprentice finally let out a cold, heh-heh laugh.

"Even if you got the secret-realm sorcerer artifact, I'll take it from you!"

After saying that, the wizard apprentice signaled to several friends on either side of him, and the group charged madly at the wizard apprentices who had come alone.

Faced with the charge, aside from a small portion who threw caution to the wind and ran toward the secret-realm hut, most of the wizard apprentices who had come alone scattered and fled, seemingly no longer intending to fight over this secret-realm reward.

"Green!"

Just then, a female wizard apprentice saw Green, who was wearing a mask, and cried out in delighted surprise, running toward him without caring about anything else.

This female wizard apprentice was actually someone from the Blood Sail Alliance. Moreover, this woman seemed very familiar with Yorkris; in normal times, Green had occasionally seen the two of them together.

Although Green had seen her a few times, he had never spoken to her. She seemed to be called Ilaltiwen.

However, none of that mattered.

Green looked at the adolescent male wizard apprentice chasing after Ilaltiwen with a savage grin, and the excitement in his heart was beyond words. He shouted again and again inside, Yes! Yes! Just like that! A little closer!

Green stood completely still, restraining all his Mark fluctuations.

Ilaltiwen looked at Green, who had not left, and her eyes filled with emotion. She and Yorkris had not truly become lovers, yet Green could actually disregard danger to rescue her. He truly was a wizard apprentice with feeling and loyalty, making people feel full of trust toward him.

Ilaltiwen did not think Green was saving her because they were both members of the Blood Sail Alliance, because that relatively distant relationship might allow them to form an alliance in normal times, but it absolutely could not earn her a rescue in a moment of danger.

As for any other reason for the rescue, Ilaltiwen had not considered it at all.

Watching the adolescent male wizard apprentice draw closer and closer, Green even began to lick his lips excitedly, his expression terrifying to the extreme.

Ilaltiwen ran to Green's side, turned her head, and struggled to gather her magic power against the pursuing wizard apprentice. Panting, she said to Green behind her, "This guy is very strong. He's from Ivory Castle. Just hold him back. I already contacted..."

Abruptly, a terrifying wave of Mark fluctuations erupted behind Ilaltiwen!

Like the sun in the sky, radiating endless light and heat, it drowned out all nearby Mark fluctuations in an instant. In that moment, Ilaltiwen's Mark fluctuations were like a hidden reef in a surging flood, submerged until not a trace of them could be seen.

In the instant Green mobilized his magic power, every wizard apprentice within the secret-realm contest area had their expressions change in horror, looking in disbelief at Green, who wore excitement, cruelty, and a savage grin.

"Run!"

Almost without hesitation, the female wizard apprentice riding the giant earth-element bear rushed straight into the distance, the giant bear leaving waves of trembling across the ground.

Ilaltiwen stood utterly motionless, her face deathly pale, staring in disbelief at the wizard apprentice before her, drowned in the terrifying fluctuations of fire-element energy—the wizard apprentice whose Mark fluctuations had reached ten!

All of this was Green?

Green broke into a sprint. A fireball condensed at his fingertips again, and he hurled it at a wizard apprentice who had not had time to pull away from him. With a surge of flame, that wizard apprentice did not even have time to scream.

At that moment, Green was like a starving wolf charging into a flock of sheep, greedily slaughtering any prey his claws could reach. By the time Green had killed the fourth wizard apprentice, the vast secret-realm battle area was actually empty of people.

"Pale Mask devil, I'll remember you!"

In the distance, a wizard apprentice whose courage had been shattered by fear screamed at Green, yet fled without stopping for even a moment.

Green paid no attention, only licked his lips and said, "Fifty-one Mark points."

Glancing at Ilaltiwen, who stood dazed and motionless in the distance, her face deathly pale, Green did not walk over to greet her or anything. He only smiled faintly, then headed straight for that Labrador Nightmare Tree.

However, in Ilaltiwen's eyes, Green's smile was simply like a demon baring its fangs. Her already stiff body trembled from instinct, beads of sweat as large as beans seeping from her skin, her face pale.

"No, no, your Mark exceeds thirty. You can enter the room directly now."

At this moment, the Labrador Nightmare Tree actually opened its mouth and spoke.

Green was startled, then smiled. "Interesting."

Walking straight into the room, what entered Green's eyes were nine magic staves of identical workmanship standing on supports. One of the supports stood empty, seemingly taken by the person before him.

Green pondered, "This is the reward? It seems... they're only ordinary sorcerer artifacts with simple sealed sorcery."

Just as Green's hand touched one of the magic staves, a force of twisted space suddenly came from within the room. Green's figure, along with that magic staff, vanished with a whoosh.