Chapter 325 – Beginning

For Master-Level powerhouses, no being below Formal-Level could hold any secrets from them!

Strictly speaking, this statement was somewhat exaggerated. After all, even if information about powerhouses above Formal-Level was known by weaker beings below that level, the information itself possessed some ability to shield against Divination Spells. Moreover, Divination Spells weren’t equivalent to viewing character profiles – even to investigate a single matter, they required key clues and a relatively narrow scope, given how vast the Multiverse was. Who knew how many people shared the same name? Using just a name for divination would only yield vast, blurry masses of chaotic, meaningless information.

However, Punk’s current use of Divination Spells to investigate a minor noble who, according to Ben Lajie, definitely wasn’t at Formal-Level should have been quite straightforward. He had narrowed the scope to within the Dragon Roar Kingdom’s borders, with the precondition set as “a noble who purchased seventeen kilograms of White Butterfly Wings from the ‘Flicker Shell’ aerial port one hundred and thirteen years ago.”

With such detailed parameters, Punk’s divination should have been nearly certain to succeed, yet…

“Ahem… let me ask – was this noble called Gabor de Lutos using his real name?”

After employing five or six Divination Spells without success, Punk stood in an inconspicuous mountainous jungle, frowning as he dispersed the dense magical energy lingering around him. He then looked displeased at Ben Lajie:

“Mr. Nokani, according to the Divination Spells’ results, there simply isn’t any noble named Gabor de Lutos in the Dragon Roar Kingdom. If his presence was being shielded from divination, the result would be ‘cannot be divined,’ not ‘no such person exists.’ So, Ben Lajie, when will your intelligence ever become reliable?”

Seeing the contempt and disdain in Punk’s eyes, even the good-natured Ben Lajie grew irritated:

“How is this my fault? The goods handled by my aerial port often have questionable origins. Customers using fake names is completely normal! Do you think black markets force customers to register with real names? Do you think this is the Church of the Wealth Goddess where you’re depositing money?”

Noting Ben Lajie’s rising temper, Punk didn’t press further. Although he felt his partner wasn’t fulfilling the intelligence-providing responsibilities they’d initially agreed upon, now wasn’t the time for internal conflict with enemies looming. Besides, Ben Lajie’s complaint wasn’t entirely unreasonable.

Finally, Punk sighed and vigorously rubbed his temples:

“The name being fake is one thing. If we had the correct nationality and detailed events, I might still manage to divine the true participant’s name through other means. But if the nationality is fake too… then I’m out of options! Don’t misunderstand – I’m asking beforehand because the next attempt requires some spellcasting components that are quite valuable. If you can’t confirm whether the nationality is genuine, there’s no point wasting these materials.”

“Now you’re really looking down on me! With my thousand-year reputation in business, I’ll stake my claim here today – the nationality is absolutely genuine! I know where my goblin airships fly! If the nationality turns out fake, I’ll reimburse you for the spell components!”Faced with Punk’s skepticism, Ben Lajie’s old face couldn’t hide his embarrassment. Throughout their journey, aside from fighting, he could only stand by and watch other matters, making this self-proclaimed senior mage rather awkward.

Hearing Ben Lajie speak with such conviction, Punk refrained from further mocking the old man. Though he truly wanted to ask if Ben Lajie had any exchange points left to compensate him, upon second thought, it was better not to provoke him too much at this point. Both Punk and Ben Lajie were simmering with frustration, and reckless provocation would be unwise for either side.

Setting aside these messy doubts, Punk directly took out a small crystal and rapidly chanted an incantation in the ancient “Meranda Language.”

“Master-Level Divination Spell—Inquiry of the Unseen”!

This spell was already Punk’s strongest divination spell aside from “Foul Divination.” To assist the spell and enhance its effects, Punk had no choice but to use the soul of a “Vile Corpse Worm” stored in the crystal as a casting material. This meant his few “dormant” Vile Corpse Worms were doomed—a painful loss for Punk, as Vile Corpse Worms were expensive!

Fortunately, Punk’s divination spell finally succeeded this time.

“Huai’en Ting—that’s the only name I got.”

Under Ben Lajie’s expectant gaze, Punk calmly uttered the name.

“But aside from that, I have some bad news for you—the Zordas Family has deceived us thoroughly. I’m certain! Ovakain Acidmaw’s spellcasting level is definitely above mine because… even with my strongest divination spell, I couldn’t foresee anything beyond the name! The divination-blocking spell on that Huai’en is something I simply can’t break.”

Though they had gained a slight clue, Punk’s gaze grew even colder.

When luck turns sour, even drinking cold water feels like a chore. Isn’t that right? In less than a day, bad news kept piling up, and now the most headache-inducing outcome had surfaced again—that damned black dragon’s spellcasting level was at least level seventeen!

“I know of Huai’en Ting—he’s quite famous in the Dragon Roar Kingdom… But are you sure… that dragon’s spellcasting level is higher than yours?”

At this question, Ben Lajie’s face also paled. A dragon spellcaster of at least level seventeen, holding the advantage of home turf with time, location, and people on its side—what did that mean? It meant a once near-certain “hunt” had inexplicably turned into a life-or-death struggle. Moreover, the opponent was skilled in divination and alchemy spells, and with an entire kingdom as its backbone, creating a few Master-Level golems was almost a given…

“…Damn that Zordas Family has gone mad… Maybe… maybe we should just call it off. Honestly, I’m not good at fighting mages with such mysterious methods, let alone on that dragon’s turf…”

Quite predictably, Ben Lajie was getting cold feet. After all, he was the type of “hedonist mage” who clearly wasn’t cut out for combat. He could handle easy fights, but in a life-or-death struggle… Punk doubted Ben Lajie could even take on a freshly leveled fifteen-tier berserker.However, unlike Ben Lajie’s perspective, Punk had no intention of retreating. In his view, an enemy who was a powerful mage skilled in alchemical magic didn’t just signify Master-Level golem allies and unpredictable magical potions—it also represented immense wealth and resources!

Punk was no stranger to risk-taking. With Joni Zordas included, their side boasted three Master-Level powerhouses. Though Ben Lajie was somewhat unreliable and Joni… untrustworthy, they still had a sixty percent chance of victory in a real fight. And in the worst-case scenario…

“Haitraz’s Magic Box… Even if I can’t win, can’t I outrun them?”

Feeling the compact Magic Box nestled against his heart, Punk quickly regained his composure. Bolstered by this assurance, he unhesitatingly summoned a new mana ray and resolutely declared to Ben Lajie:

“It’s not time to flee yet. We’re going to capture that Huai’en right now. After extracting all his memories, we’ll pretend ignorance and approach the Zordas Family! Joni Zordas… thinks he can use us as pawns? Hah! We’ll find an opportunity to eliminate him along with the rest!”

The battle begins! Cast your votes quickly, mwah~

(End of Chapter)