Magic Pioneer typically appear before the world as human men around thirty years old. Their height is generally constant at 1.88 meters, and the outline of their bodies is slightly blurred, like a frame-out movie scene, as if they exist in multiple overlapping layers of reality.
On her shoulder-length silver hair, each strand seemed to be a physical carrier composed of miniature rune chains. The hair moved without wind, and even the trajectory of its movement seemed to be enacting some kind of high-level magical equation.
On the surface of his Eternity unchanging deep blue robes flowed faint silver patterns— Rune Array that operated on its own. If there was anyone in the Astral Realm whose runic mastery Logo wasn't confident he could match, it would probably only be this Magic Pioneer.
Before the Goddess of Fate ascended to the position of Eternity, among the nine Eternal recognized by the Astral Realm, the Magic Pioneer was distinguished from the other Eternal.
He does not establish Divine Kingdom, nor does He collect faith, nor does He pursue dimensional dominion; He is the only Eternal whose core purpose is to "guide the development of civilization."
The Magic Pioneer, Dale Adrian, firmly believed that the source of power was "the depth of understanding of the laws," and he was also recognized as the absolute authority in the field of magic.
Similarly, the Magic Pioneer also possess exceptional leadership skills.
He issued a "Guideline for Civilization Development" every century for the Adrian Federation, providing only direction but not specific paths or implementation plans, leaving them to be carried out by subordinates without interfering with their efforts.
Such a micro-manipulation, akin to moving the muzzle of a machine gun five centimeters to the left, was something the Magic Pioneer had never done before.
After establishing the basic framework of the Federation, He largely delegated power to the Nine Sages, only intervening personally when civilization faced major decisions.
The Magic Pioneer never explained the reasons for his decisions, but history has shown that every "intuition" he made averted a catastrophic future.
When not conducting complex magical research, the Magic Pioneer would occasionally disguise himself as an ordinary Mage and travel throughout the Federation, experiencing the details of civilization firsthand. He once taught anonymously at the fifth-ranked Arcane Academy, where he nurtured three future Grand Sage.
The Magic Pioneer treats all spellcasters equally; He always seems serious, expectant, and has an insatiable thirst for higher goals.
Within the arcane academy where the Magic Pioneer once taught, stands a high wall radiating magical Radiance. Inscribed on the wall with runic power is a passage of text, the wisdom left by the Magic Pioneer, Dale, to his students.
He said--
"Magic is not power, but understanding. When you cast spells only for power, you become a prisoner of magic. Civilization is like a spark, and I am not the kindling, but the one who ensures the wind is blowing in the right direction. Eternity is not the goal, but the time necessary to explore the Truth."
This passage circulated widely among the Adrian Federation and the entire Astral Realm Spellcaster community, further solidifying the fundamental goal and code of conduct for spellcasters: not to pursue power, but to pursue Truth.
Furthermore, regarding the true nature of Dale, the Northern Spirit Empire's top-secret files, the greatest rival of the Adrian Federation, contain only one brief description—
"The Pioneer is not someone who ascends from mortal to Eternal. He is the material form chosen by the concept of 'magic pursuing ultimate wisdom' at the critical point of a certain cosmic era after gaining self-awareness."
The so-called past life memories of ' Dale Adrian' are merely a simulation program woven by this concept to understand finite lifespan.
He will perish alongside the act of 'intelligent life exploring the unknown'.
His ultimate goal is to witness magical civilization reach the shore of understanding—wherever that shore may be.
Perhaps it is precisely for this reason that the Pioneer can truly be "Eternity," truly "pioneering," and truly stand before all Mage, guiding the Adrian Federation through the torrents of the Astral Realm towards a distant place that even they themselves cannot fully describe, with Endless years and unfathomable wisdom.
He is a leader, a mentor, a guardian; He is the personification of magic's pursuit of Truth. As long as spellcasters gaze at the Starry Sky, as long as wisdom attempts to comprehend the universe, Dale Adrian will exist Eternity, Eternity moving forward.
Even the rival Northern Spirit Empire holds such a high opinion of Dale, demonstrating his status within the entire magical civilization. It should be noted that in the Northern Spirit Empire's archives, among the Nine Eternity, Dale Adrian's evaluation is second only to the Mother of the Stars.
Of course, this may be due to the contempt of a group of civilizations for other forces. Although the Adrian Federation and the Northern Spirit Empire compete with each other, they also cooperate, especially when facing the Divine Realm.
The Third Astral Realm War was a joint effort by these two civilizations that brought down the gods of the Divine Realm, creating Dusk of the Gods.
Therefore, the Northern Spirit Empire treats the Federation's leaders with extra respect and makes certain biases in its judgments.
However, it is undeniable that the wisdom of the Pioneer is indeed among the best of the Eternal.
At this moment, facing the gazes cast upon him by the Federation's high command, the Pioneer remained calm, his voice devoid of any emotion, and said, "The Astral Realm has been in turmoil for some time now. The World Alliance and the Primogenitor Mountain have just concluded a high-intensity confrontation. The Primogenitor Mountain was defeated and retreated back to the Fantasy Dimension."
"The Divine Realm and the Northern Spirit Empire are locked in fierce battle. The Divine Realm's objective is to rescue the God of War, Dax. The Northern Spirit Empire appears unwilling to relinquish its prey, but I speculate that its true target is the Primordial Heaven, and perhaps it harbors some even more powerful trump card."
"The Bottomless Abyss of the Demon Realm of the End, and the Black Prison Realm are locked in a standoff. This mutual restraint prevents most of the evil forces in the entire Astral Realm from taking advantage of this period of intense turmoil to cause chaos. This is a great thing for all living beings, but it's somewhat strange. It's as if an invisible hand is controlling the changing situation in the entire Astral Realm Astral Realm. The owner of that hand seems to be stirring up the situation, yet also seems unwilling to let it escalate too much..."
At this point, a slight ripple appeared in the Magic Pioneer's eyes, but it quickly vanished as he continued to analyze the Astral Realm situation.
"The Seven Deadly Sins demons and the Duke of Hell in the Nine Hells are on unprecedented alert in order to protect the smooth advancement of the Lord of Hell, Asmodeus. They even went so far as to betray the Primordial Heaven to the Northern Spirit Empire in exchange for the latter turning its guns on them. Heh, you really can't talk about morality with these Devils of Hell. Only by being just as ruthless can you cooperate with them."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Magic Pioneer sat up straight, glanced around, and said, "I believe you've all understood what I mean. The major superpowers of the Astral Realm, the Eternal, are basically tied down by various forces, temporarily locked in a stalemate. This is our golden opportunity. The plan we've been preparing can begin."
After the last sentence was spoken, the nine Grand Sage and twenty-seven deans were all jolted. Some of them had a terrifying glint in their eyes, eager to try, while others frowned, hesitant, as if they were wondering about something.
The more powerful a force is, the more numerous and fragmented its internal factions will be; this is a fact that is beyond human control.
Despite his supreme status within the Adrian Federation, the Magic Pioneer, Dale, cannot act arbitrarily. Otherwise, not only would he himself inevitably face backlash, but the damage to the entire magical civilization would be far greater.
In short, within a civilized system, even the Eternal need to consult with higher-ups and cannot act arbitrarily.
"Gorgon, you seem to have some other ideas. Speak up. Spellcasters never forbid their companions from speaking, and even if your opinion differs from mine, I will still respect it."
A gentle smile appeared on the Magic Pioneer's lips. As this smile blossomed, the atmosphere in the entire conference hall instantly softened, and everyone relaxed, their tense emotions easing.
This was not achieved through force, but rather through the charisma of Dale Adrian himself.
As He Himself said, He never held a grudge against other high-ranking officials of the Federation because they had different opinions. Dale showed great respect for any suggestion.
Otherwise, even if He existed Eternity, He would not receive the respect of almost all spellcasters.
It should be understood that in the era when gods shone brightly across the heavens and dominated all realms, spellcasters were all incredibly rebellious and dared to rebel in a dark age when there was no hope. Unrulyness was the defining characteristic of this group. In pursuit of the Truth they believed in, they dared to do anything, even drag the gods down from their pedestals.
Gaining the respect of a spellcaster is incredibly difficult; power alone is far from enough.
The Emperor Gorgon mentioned by the Magic Pioneer, whose full Gorgon Tef, is the fifth-ranked Rune Grand Sage among the nine Grand Sage. He is proficient in rune linguistics, array topology, and adaptive rune editing.
The Rune Grand Sage's fighting style is as precise as a machine, like writing a battle thesis. Every Magic Runes in Gorgon's hands is like a carefully chosen word, and every combination of runes must undergo rigorous logical proof. As a result, he is destined to have a rigorous and meticulous personality.
Gorgon first nodded to the Magic Pioneer, then extended a finger gleaming with silver runes and gently pointed forward.
A book composed of runic veins appeared.
The pages turned, and all sorts of information flowed through the room, reaching everyone in the conference hall, including the Magic Pioneer.
Once the information flow is complete.
Gorgon then spoke, "Leader, and esteemed sirs, I do not believe now is the best time to conquer the Elemental Dimension."
"Based on my rune calculations, once we launch an offensive against the Elemental Dimension, there is a 98.2536% probability that it will attract the attention of powerful forces and individuals throughout the Astral Realm."
"The 'powerful' I'm referring to are advanced astral civilizations and forces and Main God at the level of the Astral Realm or higher."
"The three dimensions of the Astral Realm are closely interconnected; a change in one can have far-reaching consequences. Moreover, the Elemental Dimension is related to the concentration and activity of the entire Void Energy ocean, which will affect the lives of countless Void races, potentially leading to uprisings."
"Of course, none of the above is the key issue. The most troublesome thing is that the Mother of the Stars, as the guardian of the Material Dimension, could kill our operation before it even began. Furthermore, her intervention would expose the Federation's covetousness of the Elemental Dimension to the entire Astral Realm. From then on, the elemental life forms would undoubtedly regard us as enemies..."
The Rune Grand Sage Gorgon painted a picture for everyone present of a scenario where the Adrian Federation was surrounded by enemies.
It seemed that any action by the Federation would lead to an extremely dire situation, causing the attendees to frown.
However, other Grand Sage immediately refuted this.
Among the nine Grand Sage, the first-ranked Elemental Grand Sage, Kalista Flameheart, immediately stood up and spoke, saying, "Lord Gorgon, your analysis is a bit too pessimistic. Why not think about the bright side?"
"Right now, the entire Astral Realm is like a pool of water that has been completely churned up. Apart from us, almost all the major super-civilizations are entangled in various trivial matters and are unable to move."
"Most of the ten Eternal are also restrained by their own circumstances, or, like the Lord of Time, are undergoing transformation within the Eternally Sealed Dragon Realm, unable to escape."
"As for the Mother of the Stars, she hasn't appeared for many years. Who knows if she's traveling in other realms, seeking further opportunities? And even if the Mother of the Stars is in the Astral Realm, given her personality, she most likely wouldn't interfere in external affairs."
"I believe there is no better opportunity than now. We must act immediately and decisively. Once we take control of the entire Elemental Dimension, the power of our entire civilization will undergo a tremendous transformation, and the entire spellcasting community will benefit from it!!"
The words of the two Grand Sage enlivened the atmosphere of the Arcane Council, with one Grand Sage after another expressing their opinions, as did the twenty-seven deans.
The Magic Pioneer, Dale, remained silent throughout, listening quietly to the opinions with a gentle smile on his lips.
As a spellcaster, He can witness the collision of various kinds of wisdom, because only in this way can a more refined crystallization of wisdom be produced.
As the leader of the Adrian Federation, Dale Adrian prefers to see a dynamic leadership group that doesn't just listen to the opinions of one person, otherwise the whole group will fall into a state of stagnation.
What makes civilizations and communities great is precisely their vibrant exploration and exchange.
Those fools who only know how to exert their individual strength have no idea how terrifying the power will be when the collective strength is truly integrated.
Of course, as one of the strongest individual forces, the Magic Pioneer would not overlook the power of an individual.
He understood even more that no matter how powerful the collective force was, it could only truly unleash its power when united as one.
A hand rose.
The previously noisy scene instantly fell silent, and all eyes turned to the Magic Pioneer seated in the main seat, filled with reverence. The Magic Pioneer smiled at them and said softly, "This operation has been planned for a long time, and my opinion is to proceed. Of course, the Rune Grand Sage's concerns are not without merit. However, I can assure you that the Mother of the Stars will not intervene."
"In addition, there are two other gentlemen attending this meeting; you might want to hear their opinions."
Having said that, the Magic Pioneer waved his hand gently, and two divine thrones appeared out of thin air on either side of him, with two gods quietly appearing on them.
The high-ranking officials of the Adrian Federation narrowed their eyes as they watched the two deities suddenly appear. They recognized them as Mystra, the Goddess of the Weave, and Angley, the God of Wisdom. Both were deities very close to the spellcaster community and were among the pinnacle of the Supreme God. Their sudden appearance—could it be that they too were going to intervene in this Elemental Dimension war?