Chapter 397 - 300: Comet Azur

Even at night, the region around Mt. Gelmir was brightly illuminated.

However, this was not because of the Erdtree's radiance.

This land had once risen in rebellion and was filled with blasphemers. The Erdtree was no longer willing to cast its light upon it.

Lava covered the Mt. Gelmir region, flowing everywhere until it had effectively replaced every river.

Distorted waves of heat continually erupted from the scorching magma, while the pungent stench of sulfur hung over the entire area.

The fiery glow cast by those endless streams of lava was the only light remaining for the countless Omenkillers, abominations, and blasphemers inhabiting Mt. Gelmir.

Thus, people had come to call this place, with a mixture of awe and dread, the Seethewater River.

Lucian stood silently in midair, looking down upon the mountainous region spread out beneath him.

At the moment, he was considering how best to plan his route.

After parting ways with Ranni, he had immediately set off toward his next destination.

Because of the location of Celes's hideout, Lucian had soon arrived at the Bridge of Iniquity.

This was one of the roads connecting Mt. Gelmir to the Altus Plateau.

In the past, Volcano Manor had served as a place where Leyndell imprisoned sinners, interrogating and punishing them.

However, Mt. Gelmir's terrain was extremely rugged, with countless mountain ranges stretching across the region. Traveling through it was a considerable hassle.

To make transporting prisoners easier, a road had once connected Leyndell directly to Volcano Manor.

It was known as the Road of Iniquity, the route along which sinners were transported.

But by now, that road had been severed as well.

When the Battle of Mt. Gelmir broke out during the Shattering, Leyndell's counterattack had pushed all the way to Volcano Manor's doorstep.

Volcano Manor had been thoroughly overwhelmed, with no means of putting up an effective resistance. After barely managing to repel the attackers, its defenders had no choice but to destroy the bridge.

As a result, the soldiers of Leyndell were forced to find a new route, establishing rest stops as they advanced through the mountains.

Eventually, their supply lines were cut off, and they resorted to cannibalizing their own comrades.

But that was a story for another time.

For Lucian, who could explore the region by flying, the lack of roads was hardly a problem.

He could simply fly straight ahead and reach his destination without difficulty.

However, compared with Volcano Manor, Lucian was more interested in another figure nearby, someone who had been placed under a form of confinement.

The teacher of Sorceress Sellen: Azur, the Primeval Sorcerer.

As one of the leading figures of the Primeval Current tradition, he was a master whom Lucian could practically address as his great-grandmaster.

The sorcery he had comprehended while searching for the path to the Primeval Current, Comet Azur, was nothing short of astonishing.

When it came to single-target damage, there was probably no sorcery more powerful than this one.

Learning it was one of the main purposes of Lucian's journey. It would be an important step toward completing his combat sorcery repertoire.

Earlier, while spending time with Ranni, he had been so preoccupied with their romantic affairs that he had completely forgotten to learn any sorcery.

As a result, he still hadn't mastered either the Dark Moon or Comet Azur.

Although the Ancient Death Rancor and Impenetrable Thorns had already expanded his arsenal considerably, Lucian was still not satisfied.

Therefore, before finding Rykard and collecting his Great Rune, Lucian had decided to locate Master Azur first and learn Comet Azur.

Unfortunately, locating Master Azur somewhere amid these vast mountain ranges was no simple task.

Under normal circumstances, Lucian would have followed the road below, making his way along the Seethewater River.

At the river's end, he would then head back into the mountains. Master Azur could be found at the end of the path.

Reality, however, was not so convenient. This was an enormous volcanic region filled with countless overlapping mountains.

After thinking it over, Lucian flew toward the westernmost part of Mt. Gelmir, intending to cross the entire volcanic range.

The group responsible for guarding Master Azur had quite a few members, and there was even a settlement nearby.

If he observed the ground from above while flying, it should be relatively easy to spot traces of a settlement or a gathering of people.

But as Lucian ventured deeper into the region, he soon discovered that he might not need to go to all that trouble after all.

On one of the mountains, he sensed an incredibly brilliant starlight within his mental domain.

In a place filled with flying sparks and shrouded in poisonous miasma, that serene starlight shone as brightly as the morning star.

Without hesitation, Lucian immediately flew toward it.

---

As expected, after crossing the mountains that stretched across much of the volcanic region, Lucian found Master Azur halfway up one of the volcanoes.

At the edge of a cliff, a faint emerald glow from glintstone flickered continuously.

The moment he saw that light, Lucian was certain that this was where Master Azur resided.

Who else could produce such a sight, apart from someone whose body had become partially crystallized into glintstone, approaching the state of an inorganic object?

As Lucian drew closer, a figure covered in glintstone came into view. A crown of green glintstone rested upon his head.

Master Azur sat upon a large boulder, the glintstone covering his head continually flashing with light.

The crown had replaced his brain and skull. The flickering radiance it emitted represented the fact that its owner was thinking.

His long black-and-gold robe, adorned with feathers and ornaments, symbolized his status as one of the highest-ranking teachers in the Academy of Raya Lucaria. Even the robe had now been stained and transformed by the spread of glintstone.

Nearby, there were also creatures much like those found around him in the game.

A Demi-Human Queen and the large number of Demi-Humans under her command had settled in the abandoned village nearby.

Several sorcerers from the Academy were also sitting quietly, each gazing up at the starry sky.

Looking at the lax security arrangements, Lucian shook his head.

This place could hardly be considered a prison at all. If Master Azur wanted to leave, he could do so whenever he pleased.

Both Master Azur and Master Lusat were obsessed with the Primeval Current, and both had been imprisoned by the Academy.

But there was no doubt that Master Azur understood politics better than Master Lusat, and he was also more humane.

Master Lusat had been locked away in a cave where sunlight could never reach, with a special seal placed upon him as well.

That seal was extremely elaborate. Even if it couldn't ultimately restrain Master Lusat, it at least demonstrated the effort and determination the Academy had invested in keeping him imprisoned.

By contrast, the place where Master Azur was confined was remarkably relaxed. He could even sit around watching the stars.

Being able to continue studying the stars made his circumstances far better than those of Master Lusat.

Lucian even saw one of the sorcerers approach Master Azur and respectfully ask him something, seemingly seeking his guidance.

Lucian raised an eyebrow.

It seemed these sorcerers no longer cared about their duties as guards. They weren't even bothering to pretend otherwise.

That made sense. Once the Shattering began, nobody had really been looking after this place anymore.

For a sorcerer, even learning the slightest fragment of Master Azur's knowledge would be an invaluable opportunity.

Lucian slowly flew toward the place where Master Azur was sitting.

Soon, the sorcerers on the ground noticed him and rose to their feet.

The Demi-Humans hadn't yet figured out what was happening, but under the Demi-Human Queen's direction, they also began preparing themselves.

However, before Lucian could even open his mouth to explain himself, Master Azur had already raised a hand.

The sorcerers quickly understood his intention. They stopped where they were and returned to their previous positions.

Seeing that Master Azur had dismissed everyone, Lucian approached him curiously.

It seemed that Lucian wasn't the only one who had noticed Master Azur in advance. The other party had also been expecting him.

No, perhaps Master Azur had been guiding him here from the very beginning.

Lucian approached Master Azur and bowed respectfully, just as a student would before a teacher.

He had always respected his teachers. Facing his teacher's own teacher, he naturally couldn't afford to be discourteous.

Master Azur sensed the traces of magic within Lucian and immediately recognized him as Sellen's student.

Unfortunately, he could no longer speak, making verbal communication impossible. Still, teaching sorcery didn't necessarily require words.

Master Azur extended the index finger of his right hand. A green magical radiance shone from its tip.

Without saying anything, he beckoned to Lucian, signaling for him to come closer.

Lucian hesitated for a moment, but ultimately bent down and leaned toward Master Azur.

The partially inorganic hand moved with difficulty, bringing its fingertip into contact with Lucian's forehead.

In an instant, pale emerald starlight flowed along Lucian's skull and poured continuously into his spinal cord.

Feeling this power, Lucian's eyes widened.

Had Master Azur just directly imparted his knowledge and power to him?

Lucian focused even more intently, savoring the profound mysteries contained within it.

At that very moment, Lucian truly felt the nascent stirring of his star core.

Long, long ago, Master Sellen had explained this to him.

Glinstone was essentially amber formed from the stars, containing the power of fragments of stellar life.

Glintstone sorcery was meant to explore the stars and the life that dwelled within them.

But it was only now, looking back, that Lucian was gradually beginning to understand the mysteries of the Primeval Current tradition.

Resonate with glintstone. Investigate the origin of glintstone. And then, ultimately, become a star yourself.

Guided by Azur's power, Lucian once again entered the starry expanse preserved within his memories.

Lucian's consciousness had once ventured deep into the starry cosmos, where he encountered an Outer God and gained benefits from the experience.

However, he had never truly understood what that encounter meant.

Now that he had returned to the starry expanse preserved in his memories, everything had changed completely.

So that was it. The Primeval Current had been with him all along.

Suddenly, Lucian felt the flesh and blood of his body beginning to change.

It started with his blood. The once-burning liquid grew cold, transforming into something resembling pure magic and glintstone.

This change was not caused by Master Azur's power. He was merely teaching Lucian.

What was happening was the resonance between Lucian himself and glintstone.

Once Lucian realized that his body was gradually turning into glintstone because he was beginning to comprehend the essence of the Primeval Current, he immediately forced the process to a halt.

Lucian understood that this transformation meant becoming one with glintstone, and that it would benefit him. He wasn't rejecting the change itself.

After all, his body had already been altered by all sorts of different powers. Adding glintstone to the list hardly mattered.

He simply needed to control the extent of the transformation and keep this power within the framework he had established for himself.

He still needed to fight as a warrior. It would be troublesome if his flesh and blood were transformed along with everything else.

Lucian experimented repeatedly, eventually succeeding in restricting the transformation to his bones alone. This allowed him to gain the benefits without interfering with the rest of his body.

Then, excruciating pain surged upward from his coccyx, climbing vertebra by vertebra. Cold glintstone began growing inside every segment of his spine.

Magic surged continuously through Lucian's bones, rapidly changing their original structure.

His bones had already been incredibly hard, but now they became gem like, turning translucent and crystalline, as though they were made of glass.

At this moment, Master Azur was imparting everything he had learned to Lucian without holding anything back.

In an instant, Lucian's understanding of the cosmos began to transform and ascend to a higher level. The changes in his bones accelerated as well.

When the pain reached its peak, Lucian saw a torrent of stars streaking through the dark universe: a colossal comet.

Countless stars, both bright and dim, from his memories seemed to explode simultaneously, transforming into comets. Billions upon billions of comet tails swept across Lucian's consciousness.

And that wasn't all. The long, pale blue-green tail of the comet was also being broken down and analyzed before his eyes.

In Lucian's mind, it was no longer a comet, but a countless array of spinning magical formulas.

At that moment, Lucian felt as though every form of magic was within his grasp.

But the comet soon streaked past and vanished.

In the end, nothing remained in the universe except a profound, unfathomable abyss of darkness.

The Primeval Current glimpsed by Azur was darkness.

It was said that this dark abyss had not only robbed him of his sanity, but had also filled him with fear.

Following Master Azur's guidance, Lucian too caught a glimpse of that same darkness.

Yet when Lucian faced the abyss directly, he felt not the slightest trace of fear.

He was destined to become the Sun. How could he possibly be afraid of darkness?

If nothing remained among the stars but an unfathomable darkness, then it could only mean one thing.

They were waiting for Lucian to illuminate them.

---

Lucian's consciousness returned to his body. He stared at his hands, still somewhat dazed.

Without even realizing it, he had mastered the ultimate form of comet sorcery: Comet Azur.

But there was something even more important that demanded his attention.

Lucian directed his senses inward, examining his body, and immediately discovered the changes.

Beneath his powerful flesh, every bone in his body radiated an emerald-green glow.

His gem like, glintstone-transformed bones had become sturdier than ever before. They seemed to be made of a material that had no place in this world.

Looking at this strange framework, almost like a skeleton formed from pure spiritual energy, Lucian felt no aversion whatsoever.

As long as it didn't interfere with his ability to fight, he was happy to accept any transformation. Besides, if only his bones were affected, the change would actually benefit him in battle.

He moved his body around to make sure nothing was wrong, then nodded in satisfaction.

This was even better. He now had energy storage and enhanced durability built right into his body.

Lucian turned toward Master Azur and bowed deeply.

Through the transmission just now, he had already understood Master Azur's intentions.

There wasn't any particularly complicated reason behind it. Master Azur had simply seen the possibility of advancing glintstone sorcery further in Lucian.

Whatever the reason, Lucian was deeply grateful to Master Azur.

He took out Lusat's Glintstone Staff and turned around. It was time to test the power of his new sorcery.

He had obtained this staff in Sellia a long time ago, but until now, he had never come into contact with the Primeval Current. As a result, he hadn't been able to use it at all.

Now, however, channeling magic into it felt completely natural.

As Lucian began directing his magic, he suddenly discovered that the flow of power through his body was smoother than ever before.

His previous magical circuits were nothing worth mentioning by comparison. He himself had become something like the most powerful staff imaginable.

If Lucian wished, he could now cast spells without a staff altogether.

Furthermore, if his previous magical output had been a small stream, his current output could only be described as a river.

As Lucian gathered his magic, an emerald-green glow accumulated at the tip of the staff.

At the same time, tiny glintstone particles continuously seeped out of his bones, forming a stable field around his body. This field stabilized the immense flow of magic pouring out from within him.

A dazzling comet erupted from the staff and shot straight into the sky.

Feeling its terrifying power, Lucian grew even more excited. He increased his output, releasing his magic at full force.

The glintstone particles escaping from his bones immediately transformed into dense crystalline clusters, forming around his shoulders and other joints.

The comet's power surged several times over. A massive torrent of cometary energy roared upward into the sky.

Every sorcerer nearby stood dumbfounded, staring up at the comet that stretched all the way to the heavens.

Only when the magic finally began to subside and the last trace of magical energy had been drained from his body did Lucian stop casting.

As he savored the power he had just unleashed, he couldn't help marveling at the result.

Turning his attention toward the crystalline clusters, Lucian casually willed them to disperse. The glintstone crystals on his right shoulder immediately dissolved into the most fundamental form of magic.

At the same time, he swung the staff in his right hand, and the glintstone on his other shoulder shot outward under his control, scattering into fragments.

With a mere thought, he could even manipulate tiny pieces of glintstone with ease, gathering them together to form a shield.

Such precise control over glintstone, including techniques that directly generated glintstone inside an enemy's body, had always been one of Master Sellen's specialties.

In the past, Lucian could only overwhelm his opponents by pouring overwhelming quantities of power into his attacks. Fine control had never been his strong suit.

This latest breakthrough had finally eliminated the shortcomings caused by his incomplete training in sorcery.

Whether it was foundational theoretical knowledge or the deeper truths of magic, Lucian now understood them all.

Previously, even though his Intelligence stat had already risen to a very high level, his understanding had not yet reached this realm.

Now, his numerical stats had not changed, but his mastery had advanced by leaps and bounds.

Whatever his Intelligence stat was, Lucian could now bring every point of it to bear perfectly. He might even be able to operate at 120% efficiency.