“Tanks, get ready to receive the enemy!” Zero ordered with a clear, commanding voice.

  “Damn! These arachnids are incredibly strong, even though I’ve advanced to Initiate Attunement!”

  Unlike the previous invasion, the Lesser Hiveborne Arachnids they faced this time weren’t significantly impaired by the flames. They were true first-stage Initiate Attunement magical beasts, after all.

  “Hurry up! I can’t hold them back forever!”

  “There are smaller ones among them. Hold on!”

  “Eat this!”

  The spear-bearing players that were positioned just behind acted without hesitation. They thrust their spears forward in a rapid, piston-like motion, retracting and then striking again and again. Although not every strike hit its mark, their sheer speed and relentless attacks managed to take down several of the encroaching creatures.

  Storm spotted some of the smaller arachnids sneaking through the gaps and was aware that the frontliners were preoccupied with larger ones. Without hesitation, he directed the spellcasters to unleash their magic. Flaming projectiles, ice shards, blades of wind, and many other magic attacks rained down on the incoming arachnids, providing much-needed support to the frontline. Yet, the creatures continued to press forward, paying no mind to the bodies of their fallen kin.

  In the midst of the chaos, Zero suddenly turned to Storm. “You take command. I’m joining the battle!” he said, dashing into the fray before Storm could respond.

  Usually, he was known to be the most calm and collected of the bunch; he would assess the situation from behind and never volunteer to rush ahead. But now, the situation was urgent. This decision was actually advantageous, though. Even if Storm rushed ahead, he wouldn’t be of much help since he couldn’t use magic yet. As such, the best thing he could do was to take command.

  The battle raged on with everything going according to plan, and the groups rotated positions whenever fatigue set in. Countless arachnids were killed one after another, turning the scene into a veritable slaughterhouse. However, even the enhanced stamina provided by their acolyte robes had its limits. Gradually, the players began to show signs of weariness and exhaustion. To make matters worse, there was no noticeable decrease in the enemy numbers; the arachnids seemed as numerous as ever, showing no indication of dwindling.

  “Shit! There are too many of them! Even with over fifteen of us, it’s hard to hold the line!”

  “Fighting them like this reminds me of the big spider from a certain indie game where you have to gather items in an abando— Ouch! I’ve been bitten! Healer, I need help!”

  “Ow, ow, ow! The little ones are too annoying!”

  The sheer volume of the enemy was overwhelming their carefully constructed defenses. Even the narrow gaps in the earthen wall had widened enough from the venomous acid, which allowed the arachnids to pour through as unimpeded as water gushing from a pipe.

  As Storm observed the whole situation, a realization dawned on him: If they didn’t retreat now, only demise would follow them. Uh-oh, I should issue a retreat order now; it’s time to pull back.

  To start with, they didn’t plan to conquer the dungeon in a single attack. Their initial plan was to cull down the enemy’s number to a manageable amount, but there seemed to be too many of them inside. Well, these arachnids weren’t totally idle even though their queen was gone.

  “Everyone, retreat! Retreat!” Storm ordered decisively, and the players were quick to respond.

  They swiftly and orderly withdrew while maintaining their defensive stances. On the other hand, the spellcasters at the rear continued their assault, covering their retreat. This exemplary teamwork was only possible because the players trusted each other and were not afraid of death. If such a scene were to happen in real life, even professional soldiers might fail to exhibit such discipline.

  Luckily, these spiders seemed more intent on escaping the cave than pursuing the players, allowing them to retreat with minimal casualties. As they moved away from the cave, it became evident that today was not the day they would conquer the dungeon.

  ***

  Deep beneath the academy’s main building, in the quiet of the basement, Victor sat on the brick floor, steadying his breathing and focusing his mind. After all this time, he had discovered that the room where the magic formations were located was the best mana-rich location. This place attracted the mana from the ethereal realm—the Primordial Nexus—and thus was the perfect place for the breakthrough.

  Victor mused, “To advance to an Elemental Adept Magus, there are several requirements… Have I met them all?”

  First, one would need a high-rank meditation technique. Although there were extremely rare instances where acolytes were able to break through without possessing one, often using elixirs or other means, such methods were generally flawed and risky; a minor disturbance could result in a deadly backlash. In the best-case scenario, the person would become a cripple. To mitigate this, Victor had done something genius.

  In the past few days, Auralise had provided a building on Earth filled with one hundred or so high-end computers that could be accessed remotely. While constructing a fully functional, high-rank meditation technique with the current library of data was all but impossible, even if Victor was given a century to finish the task. However, devising a rough approximation based on the Myriad Elements Method was feasible. This would at least mitigate the risk of catastrophic failure.

  If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  The second requirement involved having a Bet-tier spell as an innate spell, though this was optional. Way back in the early Ancient Era, Magi would prepare a necessary spell—usually a defensive one—for this purpose. But over time, such an approach was proven to be obsolete. It was stupid to limit oneself to a single spell, so a new technique was developed that could focus on spells of a specific element, thereby enhancing their power. So, not only would it be amplified by the elemental affinity, but it would also be strengthened by the breakthrough itself, which led to what was known as an “innate element.” On top of that, magicians would get an innate defensive force field when they became Elemental Adept Magi.

  Last on the list was to have the necessary physical strength, durability, and accumulation of infused mana. Having sufficient pockets of infused mana inside one’s body was crucial for a smooth breakthrough. Fortunately, Victor was confident he had this aspect covered.

  Once you fulfilled all these requirements, the next critical step was elemental fusion.

  “But simply meeting these requirements doesn’t ensure success in doing elemental fusion… Moreover, initiating the fusion process itself isn’t something that can be controlled at will…” His thoughts then turned to the elixir he had recently acquired. It was this very elixir that would come into play in triggering the elemental fusion.

  Mana Conduit Elixir

  A rare and potent elixir used to catalyze the process of elemental fusion and give the user a chance to step into the Elemental Adept Magus rank. This luminous, azure potion contains a concentrated essence of raw elemental forces harmoniously blended with the distilled lifeblood of an ancient elemental being.

  Cost: 100 AP

  It was not typical to use such an elixir to aid in breakthroughs. Rather, it was a last resort for desperate mages nearing the end of their lives who hadn’t met the necessary conditions for elemental fusion. Although consuming the elixir carried no direct side effects, a failed advancement attempt could be fatal. Well, the worst-case scenario wouldn’t happen to Victor since he met all the requirements.

  If the situation didn’t call for it, there was no reason to force a breakthrough. He could just take his time, perhaps waiting for the development of a complete high-rank meditation technique, and let the process unfold naturally. But with his former comrades returning with an army on the horizon, he was left with no choice. Plus, the players were getting stronger by the day—could he truly maintain his role as headmaster if he wasn’t stronger than them?

  For him, it wasn’t only about the situation at hand but also the matter of his pride. Being outdone by a bunch of ignorant people who knew nothing, while he had been living in this world for nearly two decades, would send a crushing blow to his ego.

  Be that as it may, Victor had tried meditating on the new schematic of the Myriad Elements Method and realized that his infused mana had undergone a slight purification process. He had been boosting his meditation progress by using mana crystals, and while it only affected him minimally, many impurities had accumulated within his infused mana. Hence was how he had immensely improved in the past few days.

  Before he started to rush through the bottleneck, Victor made sure that everything was in order and that he had not missed anything. For example, he had arranged dozens of mana crystals, which was essentially all his mana crystal reserve, in a circular formation around him and even constructed a makeshift magic formation to help him. Furthermore, he had left the academy’s matters for Lizbeth to take care of.

  After giving everything one final check, a resolved expression appeared within Victor’s eyes as he declared, “Let us begin.”

  With the steadiness of a mountain, he uncorked the vial and downed its content in one swift motion. Initially, the elixir brought a refreshingly cool sensation, which soon evolved into an intense, pulsating heat that radiated from his throat throughout his entire body. It was as if his body was a piping-hot kettle that could burst at any second.

  “Crap.”

  Without hesitation, Victor closed his eyes and began circulating the Myriad Elements Method, focusing intently on directing the chaotic energy unleashed by the elixir. Before long, the elemental energy all around him began intertwining with his own mana. Victor could feel the very essence of the Cosmo elemental particles drawing into him, merging with his infused mana. The space inside the magic formations room began to warp subtly, with faint cracks appearing as if reality itself was straining under the power.

  Suddenly, a surge of excruciating pain overwhelmed Victor as the crucial process of elemental fusion began. Cold sweat poured from his forehead down his back as he struggled to endure. “Agh! Aarghh!” The agony was so severe that his eyes bulged, and the muscles on his face contorted.

  Victor grappled with the forces inside his body, striving to strike a balance. The infused mana within his body was undergoing the fusion process and starting to align with the Cosmo element. This alignment was crucial; any misstep could result in a catastrophic backlash.

  His acolyte robe fluttered as if caught in an unseen breeze from the growing energy. Minutes passed, feeling like hours, as the elemental energy and his infused mana gradually found a harmonious balance, seemingly forming a new, more potent entity. His body was in a state of continuous breakage and recovery, adapting to this intense transformation. The room’s mana was being voraciously absorbed by this nascent, strengthened form of infused mana within him.

  Victor was teetering on the edge of becoming an official Magus. Without the array of mana crystals laid out around him, there was a high possibility that before he completed the elemental fusion process, he would have turned into a shriveled corpse!

  Gradually, the tumultuous sensations began to wane as they reached a perfect equilibrium, and a wave of fatigue engulfed Victor. Though changes continued within his body, he could barely resist the pull of sleep. Overwhelming drowsiness enveloped him, as comforting and irresistible as a mother’s embrace coaxing him with a lullaby.

  No matter how hard he tried to keep himself awake, Victor ultimately couldn’t resist. He subconsciously fell on his back, succumbing to exhaustion. His final conscious thought was to keep circulating the Myriad Elements Method meditation technique, pushing himself toward the threshold of becoming an Elemental Adept Magus.

  ***

  Lizbeth turned off the holographic screen as she had just finished with the meeting with the representative of the Spinula Tech Innovations. She had used her magic power to disguise her appearance and appear more human-like. Luckily, the representative on the other side didn’t suspect her in the least.

  With the terms finalized, all that remained was execution. It was only a matter of time before Victor, her master, gained what he wanted. Lizbeth smiled, pleased with herself.

  “Now, I better check on Master.” She stood and smoothed her gown, and her wings fluttered behind her. Humming softly, she flew toward the hidden staircase, intending to report directly to Victor, only to discover the door had been sealed with magic.

  Well, he had entrusted her with the academy’s matter, so she would ensure everything ran perfectly and not disturb him. After all, helping him to be the best and create the greatest academy in the universe was her sole objective in this world.