Chapter 111: Seeking Aid

"Could I please ask you to look into the situation over these next sixteen hours?"

The old man within the light screen gazed at Ling Mo with eyes full of hope. He had not missed a single minute of Ling Mo’s livestreams over the past few days and understood deeply just how formidable the man before him was. If he could be persuaded to rescue them, the chances of survival for those missing scholars would increase by at least fifty percent.

Ling Mo refused without the slightest hesitation. "Sorry, I have absolutely no interest in such matters."

As he spoke, Ling Mo reached out to shut off the light screen. The old man in the image grew visibly anxious, his words tumbling out in a rapid-fire pace: "Mr. Ling, I implore you to reconsider. If you would only go and take a look, even if the worst-case scenario unfolds, our Mage Union Council will provide you with full, unconditional support in promoting the Martial Dao—full support in every sense of the word!"

Ling Mo’s hand paused in mid-air. He did not continue his movement, but he did not retract his hand either, appearing non-committal. After a long silence, he said, "Give me the basic details. With so many of your precious scholars involved, surely your defensive forces were formidable? Were they wiped out in a single encounter?"

Hearing Ling Mo’s willingness to learn more, the elder in the mage’s robes finally let out a sigh of relief, his tone steadying. "Let me introduce myself first. I am North Kayodur, the seventh-seat elder of the Mage Union Council; you may verify my identity at any time. When you were livestreaming earlier, the location where the World Tree appeared was not in the core of the Warcraft Rainforest. The beasts in that vicinity are generally weak, so the security team was not particularly heavily armed..."

At this, Ling Mo frowned. "I remember warning that in areas where the World Tree’s aura lingers, level-six beasts would arrive after nightfall. Did you not take that seriously?"

"No, our Mage Union Council has always respected the opinions of experts. We naturally place great importance on the advice of someone like Mr. Ling, who has lived in the rainforest for so many years," the old mage explained. "In fact, our security team was configured to be capable of fighting even if they encountered a peak level-six beast, and that was factoring in the 'mana suppression' effect of the rainforest."

"Are you implying they encountered a level-seven beast?" Ling Mo narrowed his eyes. "Forgive my bluntness, but that area is still within the sphere of influence of Antuon. It is impossible for a level-seven beast that does not belong to Antuon to appear there."

"It was not a level-seven beast; our Council has already confirmed that. As you know, the research team consists of true technical experts. They are respected in any country or organization, and because their interpersonal relationships are very simple, they have almost no enemies. Therefore, our security team was primarily focused on guarding against unknown beasts." As he spoke, the old mage’s face turned ashen, a clear sign of extreme fury. "However, what we did not expect was that the research team was attacked by a group of mysterious figures in black robes! It was humans who attacked these scholars! And, conversely, it was a cat-like beast that was protecting them!"

"Humans? It is impossible for anyone that powerful in this area..." Ling Mo stopped mid-sentence, then a strange smile curled the corner of his lips. He asked, "Do the patterns on the black robes of those mysterious people feature the image of the Fourth Moon?"

"The Fourth Moon?" The old mage in the light screen was clearly stunned. He turned his head and said something to someone off-camera. After a brief silence, he suddenly realized, "So, the pale blue spherical pattern on the back of those robes symbolizes the Fourth Moon? That image is far too abstract!"

As he spoke, the light screen displayed the image of the mysterious black-robed figures. They were entirely enveloped in black robes from head to toe, with not even their eyes visible. The style of the robes was common—likely the standard attire for mages before magic evolved into its modern form—and they lacked ornamentation, save for the striking detail on the back: a standard pale blue circle containing countless tiny, orderly vortices that combined into one larger, rotating swirl. At first glance, it created the illusion that the vortex was moving slowly.

There were four figures in the footage. They moved with agility and seamless coordination. Each used magic from the earth, water, fire, and wind elements, precisely and ruthlessly dismantling the security formation. In just a few minutes, nearly ten of the dozens of guards had fallen, and the scholars protected in the center were wounded by the residual magical energy, collapsing to the ground in distress.

"As you can see, their methods are highly sophisticated. In the final transmission, one of the three guard mages had already fallen, and the other two were in a precarious situation. Fortunately, the cat-like beast helped, or they would have been overrun long ago," the old mage explained as the footage played. "I believe you have noticed that these four individuals move with incredible speed. Their movement patterns do not resemble traditional magical acceleration, but rather the pure physical movement associated with your 'Martial Dao.' This forces us to suspect that these people might have some connection to you, which is a major reason we sought your rescue."

"I don't follow your logic," Ling Mo’s smile widened. "These people’s methods are clearly linked to me, yet you ask me to rescue them? Aren't you afraid that I am one of them?"

The old mage was silent for a moment before saying, "The Mage Saint Vyss and the Mage Saint O'Brien have both personally vouched for you, stating that you have no connection to these black-robed figures. They recommended you as the best choice for this rescue mission, which is why..."

"O'Brien actually has the nerve to ask me for a favor?!" Ling Mo interrupted the old mage with extreme rudeness, his tone filled with fury. "If O'Brien sent you, then I am very sorry, but I cannot do this. Even if I could, I wouldn't. Goodbye; don't interfere with my livestream!"

"Mr. Ling! You must think this through! Refusing to help when people are dying, especially such respected scholars, will have a disastrous social impact. Even if the Mage Union Council pulls out all the stops to suppress the scandal, it will cause immeasurable negative consequences for your promotion of the Martial Dao!" The old mage’s expression shifted, shocked by Ling Mo’s reaction, and he quickly tried to analyze the situation. Before he could finish, Ling Mo cut him off with a blunt "I don't care." Seeing the old mage was about to speak again, Ling Mo shut down the Magic Eye Sprite, sighed, and slowly sat down.

"Are you really not going?" A voice came from the side—Vayne’s voice, though her tone was slightly different. Ling Mo glanced at her. "What is it? Why did you come out?"

"I have no choice," Vayne—no, it should be Vyss—stretched lazily and smiled. "In that footage, I saw my aunt. She is one of the tenured professors of Beast Studies at Evergreen University. I didn't expect her to join the World Tree expedition. If I don't go save her, my old man will annoy me to death when I get back."

She jumped in place a few times, loosening her body, and said with satisfaction, "To achieve this level of physical strength is truly remarkable! This feeling of vitality is just like the ancient 'Berserkers' from the legends of the Beastman Empire!"

Watching Vyss’s girl-next-door smile and feeling the naivety in her tone, Ling Mo could no longer hold back. He lunged forward, grabbed Vyss by the collar, lifted her up, and began kneading her delicate face with his other hand, distorting it into various ridiculous shapes.

"Let me see if this skin is truly as thick as it looks," he roared. "The attack was clearly launched by your Obedience Sect, yet here you are, a high-ranking cadre of that very sect, acting as if you're going on some noble 'rescue' mission. How can you wrap yourself in such self-righteousness as if you’re going to die a martyr?"