Chapter Sixty: Magic of Life

“Straightforward!” Qian Kun snapped his fingers and laughed, saying, “High Priest, why don’t you begin? Let me witness the mysteries of the Law of Life as you have comprehended them.”

The taciturn High Priest, without a word, suddenly radiated a green light, her entire being exuding a thick aura of vitality, making those around her feel at ease.

“The Law of Life, truly rather peculiar,” Qian Kun mused inwardly, watching the High Priest with a slight frown.

In the next moment, with a wave of the High Priest’s hand, several streaks of green light flashed instantly before Qian Kun, transforming into energy vines so realistic they seemed tangible, lashing out to entangle him. As the vines twisted and swept forward, even the space around them began to distort.

“What kind of technique is this? Anyone who didn’t know better would think she had summoned some kind of rope artifact!” Qian Kun muttered to himself, eyes widening slightly.

Facing the green energy vines hurtling toward him, Qian Kun’s hand suddenly produced a dark blue divine sword. With a flick of his wrist, waves of azure sword light fanned out like a peacock spreading its tail, easily slicing the vines into segments.

Yet, almost immediately, the severed green vines reconnected and fused, continuing their relentless assault toward Qian Kun.

“Heh, like trying to cut water with a blade—no matter how you slice, it still flows! Truly troublesome,” Qian Kun thought, making no further move to resist, allowing the green vines to coil about his body. He felt their constricting force, and at the same time, sensed an intangible, cool energy from the vines invading his body, rushing toward his mind.

“A soul attack? Pity, it’s too weak—not even a threat to an ordinary lower god, let alone me. The binding force of these vines is strong; without a divine artifact armor, a typical lower god might even be injured,” Qian Kun silently assessed the High Priest’s attack.

Seeing how easily Qian Kun was bound by her assault, the High Priest could not help but show a hint of surprise. “Is that all you’ve got?” she asked.

“Would you like to see another of my techniques, High Priest? That can be arranged,” Qian Kun replied with a smile. With a thought, flames surged from his body, and in an instant, they flared violently. The raging fire burst forth with a roar, and the green energy vines disintegrated under the onslaught.

The High Priest’s expression changed slightly in astonishment. “The law of fire? You also command the law of fire?”

“Haha… High Priest, now I understand why O’Brien could fight you to a standstill. He’s a fire-aligned lower god—the perfect counter to you! Even if your mastery of the law of life is deeper and your strength surpasses his, you still can’t overcome him, can you?”

The High Priest did not answer immediately. She took a breath, composed herself, and said coolly, “I am not your match. There is no need for further sparring. If you wish to learn life magic, follow me.”

With these words, the High Priest transformed into a stream of light, flying toward a woodland not far from the imperial capital of the Yulan Empire.

Qian Kun smiled faintly, his figure blurring like a gust of wind as he sped after her.

In the sparse forest, the High Priest descended from the sky with the grace of a celestial maiden. The moment she landed, an invisible aura of vitality spread from her, causing the surrounding flowers and grass to grow at a visible rate.

With a crisp applause, Qian Kun landed lightly nearby, grinning at the High Priest with admiration. “Life magic is indeed fascinating.”

“Fascinating?” The High Priest’s lips curled into a subtle, enigmatic smile. In the next instant, Qian Kun watched as the once thriving flowers and grass around her wilted and died with alarming speed.

With a trace of mockery, the High Priest asked, “Well, do you still find life magic fascinating now?”

“It seems I’ve come to the right person to learn life magic,” Qian Kun replied, dodging the question.

The High Priest gave a noncommittal smile, but could not help asking with a hint of curiosity, “Why do you want to learn life magic? Do you intend to cultivate the law of life as well? You should know, life magic, necromancy, and grand prophecy are the three most difficult types of magic to master. Without a certain innate talent, it’s impossible to succeed. Even if you are a divine-level expert, adept in the laws of wind and fire, that doesn’t mean you can comprehend the law of life.”

“It’s true that I’m not adept now, but that doesn’t mean I never will be,” Qian Kun replied with a meaningful smile.

The High Priest frowned slightly, clearly puzzled and not fully grasping Qian Kun’s words. However, she did not press further, turning instead to formally begin instructing him in life magic.

It was only after truly delving into life magic that Qian Kun realized his previous understanding had been incomplete. While life magic bore much in common with the path of wood, the law of life in the Panlong world emphasized “life” above all. Divine-level experts who cultivated the law of life could not only bestow vitality, but also strip it away. The law of life was also deeply intertwined with the soul.

Learning life magic was not like inheriting necromancy; Qian Kun had to start from scratch. Although his comprehension was so prodigious that the High Priest herself was secretly astounded, it still took him over half a month to fully absorb all she had taught him.

Over those weeks, Qian Kun and the High Priest grew quite close, even developing a faint, ambiguous affection for each other.

Yet both Qian Kun and the High Priest were, when it came down to it, old souls who had lived long lives. With so much experience, their temperaments were nothing like those of the young. They were able to control their emotions well and would not lightly let themselves become entangled in romance.

After mastering life magic, Qian Kun left the Yulan Empire and traveled once more to the imperial capital of the O’Brien Empire—Fiery Flame City.

Within Fiery Flame City, at the estate of Earl Wharton, the air was festive and lively. In celebration of Wharton’s engagement to Princess Nina of the Empire, many of the capital’s nobles had been invited to the betrothal banquet. Even His Majesty Emperor Johann of the O’Brien Empire had come in person, as had the Rock Sword Saint Haydson, and even the War God had commanded his two personal disciples, Lankoff and Castrol, to attend and offer congratulations.

Just as the banquet was about to begin, another unexpected guest arrived—a white-haired, somewhat aged old man with dreamlike sky-blue eyes. This was Hodan, the planar overseer of the Yulan continent.

After the banquet, on the training grounds behind the estate, Hodan called Linley aside, beginning to tempt him with talk of other planes.

Hodan gave Linley a brief explanation about the seven elemental divine planes and the four supreme planes. As soon as he began to ask whether Linley was willing to travel to another plane, before Linley could answer, a cold, mocking voice suddenly rang out: “Hodan, you’re in such a hurry to send Linley to hell—what exactly are your intentions?”

“Hm?” Hodan’s expression changed slightly as he looked up, only to see a shadow flash down from the sky—a loose-robed Qian Kun.

At the sight of Qian Kun’s casual display of speed, Hodan was inwardly taken aback. “Who is this? Such speed! A midgod? Impossible! How could a midgod suddenly appear in the Yulan continent without my knowledge? Could he have come from the Planar Prison? But the Planar Prison is sealed—how could he have gotten out?”

“Lord Qian Kun!” Linley, seeing Qian Kun, hurried forward with delight and respect. His eyes flashed as he quickly asked, “Lord Qian Kun, what did you mean just now? Is going to hell really such a bad thing?”

Qian Kun did not answer directly. Instead, he cast a cold gaze at Hodan. “Hodan, are you not leaving? Must I drive you away myself? Do you really think that just because you are a planar overseer, I wouldn’t dare kill you?”