Allen brought Pansen and his daughter to the Silver Moon Secret Realm.
The two would practice in seclusion within the secret realm.
The Barbarian bloodline belonged to the Earth subspecies.
Allen took out three thousand Earth Magic Stones mined in the Panthers dungeon and divided them between Pansen and Tanya, providing them with resources for their cultivation over the next four years.
Allen specifically urged Tanya to strive to break through to the fifth level as soon as possible.
"Sister, the stronger you become, the more helpful you will be to our common cause."
"Junior Brother, I understand. I will definitely not let you down!"
Tanya shook Allen's hand, a sudden look of embarrassment on her face.
"Kelly and the others are also in the secret realm. Can I visit them?"
"You're neighbors. Of course we should visit," Allen said with a smile.
Pansen and his daughter's residence was also in the bamboo forest.
Not far away was the villa of Alan and her sister.
Junior Sister Ella and Tiger Girl Renee also lived there.
After meeting, Alan didn't even need an introduction; the girls had already heard of each other for a long time.
The atmosphere at their first meeting was more harmonious than Alan had imagined.
Whatever the girls thought, at least they acted appropriately.
Kelly didn't act like a hostess. She took Tanya's hand, calling her "sister" sweetly!
She even asked her about Alan's embarrassing moments during his time at the academy.
Tanya casually recounted a few anecdotes.
The truly embarrassing incidents involved Alan being voted the top gigolo by the sorceresses at the academy, nicknamed "Night King"...
She was too embarrassed to tell Kelly!
During Allen's absence, Kelly, Ella, and Renee each advanced another level.
Kelly had reached Level 3.
Reni was in the late Stage 3.
Ella had also broken through a bottleneck and advanced to Level 4.
Seeing their rapid progress, Allen was deeply pleased.
These four beautiful women were not only his loving wives, but also his driving force and the treasures he had vowed to protect.
"Brother, Mom came to visit us in the Secret Realm last time and talked about things at home."
Little Junior Sister Ella, holding Allen's hand, gently admonished him.
"The Naga tribe over at Saddle Lake have been causing a stir lately."
"Brother, if you have time, it would be best if you could go back and take a look. You might need to personally intervene."
"The Naga tribe at Saddle Lake..."
Alan frowned slightly.
The indigenous forces of New Gwent have been largely eliminated.
Now, only the Naga tribe, entrenched in Saddleback Lake, remain untamed.
It's time to resolve this historical legacy.
...
After settling Pantheon and his daughter, Allen left the Silvermoon Secret Realm.
After returning to New Gwent Town, he immediately sought out Ms. Sora.
He asked her what trouble the Naga had caused.
...
In the northwest of Saddleback Lake lies a large island.
Across a salt marsh, it overlooks Silvermoon Bay, ten miles away.
Hence, it's named "Moon-Watching Island."
The Naga's home base is on Moon-Watching Island.
Besides the fact that it's surrounded by water and offers a strategic location, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack, there's another important reason for choosing this location.
Moon-Watching Island boasts rich deposits of Water Magic Stone!
For the Naga, Water Magic Stone serves as both a cultivation resource and a precious treasure.
The Nagas are not the only natives of Ma'an Lake.
Hydra lizards, also known as the Hydra, also thrive on the lakeshore.
The mythical nine-headed hydra is the ancestor of lizards.
Water Nagas can live underwater, but lizards cannot.
Lizards, similar to crocodiles, will drown if left underwater for extended periods, preferring moist swamps.
Wangyue Island is surrounded by vast swamps.
Since ancient times, it has been the habitat of lizards.
Adult lizards are enormous, possessing an average of six heads and possessing a powerful regenerative ability.
Unless all heads are chopped off within a short period of time, they will regenerate. The lizards of Saddle Lake are divided into three subtypes.
Fire lizards breathe fire.
Cold lizards spit cold currents.
Acid lizards spit acid.
There are no fewer than a hundred adult individuals of the three types!
Most of the lizards have been tamed by the naga using magic.
The naga have also established a lizard breeding and domestication base on Moon-Watching Island.
These powerful but low-intelligence magical beasts are raised as livestock.
The naga tame the lizards to mine magicite veins.
Each of the three types of lizards has its own uses in the mining process.
Newly explored mines must first be filled with water.
Cold lizards spit cold currents, freezing the lake water in the mines.
The lake freezes, expanding its volume and bursting the rock layers, exposing the veins of magicite trapped within.
This is known as "expansion mining."
The fire lizards breathe flames, melting the ice and causing the shattered ore to flow out of the mine along with the water.
Combustible impurities in the ore are also burned away.
Finally, the crude ore is stored in clay pools, where acid lizards spit acid to dissolve the impurities, leaving only non-flammable and acid-insoluble water magicite crystals.
The Naga's unique method of mining and smelting magicite is extremely efficient.
The only problem is that the lizards have a voracious appetite, requiring a large diet of fish and shrimp.
This leads to direct conflict with the fishermen of New Gwent.
If the lizards had only preyed on the wild fish and shrimp in the lake, things would have been relatively peaceful. The problem is that the Fishery Association in New Quint Territory is promoting artificial breeding techniques.
The lizards refuse to acknowledge the fishermen's fenced-off fish farms.
They break through the fences, feast, and then flee!
Who dares to stop them?
Even humans are devoured!
This has caused widespread resentment among the fishermen.
The Fishery Association and the town government have jointly sent a letter to the new Naga Mistress, Fangsi, strongly protesting.
They demand that the lizards be restrained and compensated for the losses to the fish farms.
Fangsi is the eldest daughter of the previous Naga Mistress, who was killed by Master Shiva.
Perhaps because of resentment for her mother's murder, Fangsi is unfriendly to her human neighbors.
She ignores the Fishery Association's protests and continues to allow the lizards to wreak havoc.
The conflict between humans and Nagas is becoming increasingly acute, with several violent clashes already occurring! The town's militia, whose core members were mostly disciples of the Panthers School, and combined with Akira's Orc Corps, had considerable combat effectiveness, forcing the Nagas to retreat ashore.
However, the town's armed forces, including the Orc Corps, were not adept at naval warfare and were unable to completely annihilate the Nagas of Moon-Watching Island. They could only passively strengthen their defenses.
After understanding the basic situation, Allen went straight to the point.
"Teacher Sora, how strong is the Naga Mistress?"
"Equivalent to a late-stage fourth-tier water mage."
After a brief pause, Sora added:
"She also has a deputy named Heidi, who's roughly early-stage fourth-tier."
"Except for the sisters Fangsi and Heidi, the remaining Nagas in the lake are no more than level three."
"With such limited strength, they dare to run wild on my territory. These snake demons truly deserve to be punished!"
Alan sneered, his gaze turning cold.
"Teacher Sora, I'll dictate, and you write. Send a letter to Madam Fangsi, ordering the Naga tribe to surrender within ten days!"
...
The letter was quickly delivered to Moon-Watching Island.
Mistress Fangsi was furious after reading it!
She was furious because the tone of the letter was so arrogant.
A mere small town lord actually demanded her surrender without a fight?!
"You bastard! Come on, if you're not afraid of death!"
Madam Fangsi was so enraged that she unleashed a bolt of lightning, burning the surrender letter to ashes.
She was furious, but she hadn't forgotten how her previous mistress died.
What if the enemy summoned another master of Baihu Wuzun's caliber? Fighting alone would be tantamount to suicide!
Madam Fangsi immediately gathered her tribe and the lizards, preparing for battle! That night, she and a group of her loyal subordinates hid in an underwater cavern, remotely commanding the people of Moon-Watching Island through magical communication.
In her view, no matter how powerful the White Tiger Martial Lord was, he wouldn't dare dive underwater and cause trouble for the horde of naga.
Only by residing underwater could Mistress Fangsi feel safe.
…
The day after sending the letter of surrender, Allen selected eight hundred elite swimmers from among the martial arts academy students and the orc corps to form a special island-taking task force.
The seven Swan Sisters served as instructors, intensifying training on the shores of Saddle Lake in preparation for the landing and island-taking operations.
Shortly thereafter, Allen, along with Lady Sola, boarded the battleship Sapphire to attend General Halsey's funeral.
According to naval tradition, a boat covered in flowers carried General Halsey's coffin, doused it with lamp oil, and set it ablaze.
On the deck, the military band played a mournful funeral march.
Alan, Sora, and all the officers watched the burning boat slowly sail into the depths of the sea, observing a moment of silence.
After the funeral, Alan left the fleet's acting commander, Captain Wendy Randolph, alone, inviting him to stroll and chat on deck.
"Colonel, what are your plans for the future?"
Alan asked calmly.
Colonel Randolph clutched his military cap, a look of worry in his eyes.
"Master Panthers, I want to lead the fleet back home as soon as possible and report to the South Island Federation Navy Headquarters."
Alan nodded and sighed, "Colonel, you'll be in big trouble when you return."
Colonel Randolph's face changed slightly, forcing a forced smile.
"Master, what do you mean..."
"I mean, you know what I mean."
Alan paced with his hands behind his back, bluntly pointing out Wendy's current predicament. "Colonel, you couldn't have gotten to where you are today without the care and attention of your uncle, Admiral Halsey."
"Admiral Halsey is no longer with us. Without your backer, you'll have no hope of promotion and will be marginalized. I'm afraid the blame for secretly manipulating the fleet will be pinned on you."
Wendy shuddered, his face draining of color.
The hidden danger Allen had pointed out was exactly what he was most worried about.
Knowing the dangers ahead, was there any other way out?
Wendy's eyes darkened, and she saw no hope.
Alan activated his telepathy, understanding Wendy's thoughts perfectly.
"Colonel, would you like some advice?"
"Master, I beg your advice!"
Wendy instinctively grasped at this lifeline.
"If you want to maintain your position in the military, background, strength, and merit are all essential."
Alan analyzed calmly.
"It's true that you have the Randolph family background, but after your uncle Halsey's death, how much resources the Randolph family will allocate to you depends on how much value you can bring to the family."
"Unfortunately, as of now, you're not worthy of the Randolph family's generous support."
"You're already thirty years old, and your cultivation is at the late third stage."
"Not bad, but not a top talent."
"Superb aptitude, but wind elemental bloodline is not uncommon."
"You have no military merit, but you do have a share of the blame."
"Colonel, am I right?"
Wendy nodded, her face bitter.
"Master Panthes, you're absolutely right. The problem is... can you point me in the right direction?"
"Of course, otherwise I wouldn't be wasting my time talking to you."
Alan paused, turned, and stared at Wendy.
"My teacher is the head of the Cat House at Silver Moon Monastery, and I am an elder there."
"Colonel, on behalf of Silver Moon Monastery, I can support your advancement in the military. With that background, no one dares to touch you."
"As for military merits, I have some ready-made."
"When the fleet was escorting immigrants, my teacher, Mr. Panthes, and my senior sister, Ms. Tanya, once teamed up to kill two evil dragons. Few people know about this."
"The two evil dragons..." "Long" is actually a Dragon Vein Warlock from the North Island Federation.
"The Black Dragon Warlock, Dirac, and the Green Dragon Warlock, Gram, both have reached the early fourth stage of cultivation and come from prominent families in the North Island Federation."
"My teacher and senior sister, firstly, are indifferent to fame and fortune, and secondly... they don't want the Dragon Vein Family to hold a grudge against them over this incident and seek revenge."
"So, I can take the credit for killing the Black and Green Dragons and give it to you, Colonel."
Colonel Wendy took a deep breath, a look of disbelief on her face.
Two huge pies fell from the sky and landed on her head?!
Alan smiled and raised his hand, signaling him to calm down.
"With the Silver Moon Monastery's background and the military merit you earned in killing the Twin Dragons, you can keep your current position."
"However, it's far from enough to advance further."
"Colonel, there's an old saying in my hometown: 'A blacksmith must be strong himself.' Do you understand?"
Wendy pondered for a moment, then asked respectfully, "Master, are you saying that my own strength isn't strong enough? Even with my background and military merit, I'm not up to par?"
Alan nodded gently.
"In fact, I can help you with that problem."
"Master!" Wendy couldn't contain her excitement, practically kneeling down to beg. "Please help me. I'm willing to pay any price!"
Alan smiled, quite satisfied with his attitude.
"Colonel, you know I've made some minor achievements in alchemy."
"Actually, Panthes Holy Water is nothing."
"My greatest expertise is refining bloodline awakening potions."
"Colonel, the awakened bloodline is the wind element."
"The possessed green dragon we hunted earlier was a wind subspecies. Isn't that a coincidence?"
"It's as if the ancestral spirits are guiding you, giving you a chance to change your destiny."
Wendy nodded repeatedly, her face flushed with excitement.
The five-colored dragons are born with elemental subspecies.
Red dragons are fire, white dragons are ice.
Black dragons are water, blue dragons are earth.
And green dragons, coincidentally, are wind!
"I've extracted the essence of the green dragon's bloodline."
"If it's compatible with your wind elemental bloodline, the two can fuse and awaken a second time, evolving into the powerful wind dragon bloodline."
"Colonel, the opportunity to change your destiny is right before your eyes. Do you dare to seize it?"
Wendy took a deep breath, trying to suppress her ecstasy.
"Master! What's the probability that the awakening potion you personally refined will successfully fuse the bloodline?"
"That depends on how compatible you are with the green dragon bloodline."
Alan answered slowly.
"If the compatibility is right... there's at least a 60% chance of a perfect fusion, evolving into the wind dragon bloodline."
In reality, he was 100% certain, but he didn't want to overstate it; that would be too unreasonable.
"So, what are the consequences of failure?" Wendy asked tremblingly. "Will it cause the bloodline to collapse?"
"We can't rule out such extreme consequences," Alan said frankly.
"But if you trust my skills, you don't have to worry too much about such a possibility, which is even less likely than winning the lottery jackpot."
"Generally speaking, even if the fusion fails, it won't cause you any harm."
Wendy breathed a sigh of relief and quickly replied, "I do!"
Compared to the enormous rewards, this risk is acceptable.
If I miss this golden opportunity, I'll regret it forever!
Alan smiled approvingly.
He took out a syringe and handed it to Wendy.
Let him draw his own blood.
Nominally, it was a blood typing test, but in reality, it was extracting the wind elemental bloodline essence and, using the system, fusing it with the green dragon bloodline essence.
Of course, these technical details had to be kept secret from Wendy.
The surface explanation was that it was a common technique used in the warlock world to extract bloodline awakening agents, which could also achieve the above operation.
It's just that the success rate is much lower, and the risk is much greater.
The value of the system lies in increasing the success rate to 100% and reducing the risk to zero.
This is Allen's greatest asset and his greatest secret.
Alan transferred Wendy's blood into a reagent bottle and sealed it.
"Colonel, I need some time to research."
"If nothing goes wrong, you'll have the awakening agent in three days."
"Also, the fleet will need at least a month to rest and resupply at New Quint Harbor before setting sail."
"After you've been injected with the awakening agent, you can enter the Silver Moon Secret Realm to cultivate under my name."
"This way, you'll have ample time for a second awakening, and maybe even a breakthrough to the fourth level."
Wendy's heart surged, and she finally calmed down.
Gritting her teeth, she went all out!
"Master Panthers, your kindness to me surpasses that of my parents! Please give me a chance to do something to repay your kindness!"
Alan patted his shoulder, his smile gentle and easygoing.
"Colonel, keep in touch after you return. I'll provide any intelligence I need."
"Also, there are allies of the Northern Island Federation on Silver Moon Island."
"I want to borrow your fleet to eliminate this evil force."
"After we eliminate the Northern Island Federation's followers, the credit will go to you."
"Colonel, is my request not excessive?"
"Of course not, respected Master!"
Wendy stood at attention and saluted.
"My fleet and I are at your disposal!"
After concluding his conversation with Wendy, Alan and Ms. Sora disembarked.
"What if Wendy takes advantage of you and then turns against you and refuses to acknowledge it?" Sora lowered her voice, her brows furrowed slightly. "We should make him write a letter of allegiance, so we can use it as leverage."
Alan shook his head and smiled.
If he wanted to strictly control Wendy, he wouldn't need a letter of allegiance; implanting a phantom insect egg would suffice.
But there was no need.
Pansus was a kind man, winning people over with his virtue.
"I'm supporting Wendy because she's of great use right now."
Alan calmly explained to Ms. Sora.
"In the long run, this is just a casual move. It doesn't matter whether he's there or not."
"Teacher Sora, I have absolute confidence in my potential and my rate of improvement."
"In a few years, the elders from the major families of the South Island Federation won't even be worthy of carrying my shoes, let alone a mere Wendy."
Ms. Sora was deeply impressed by the dominance revealed in his calm words.
She put her arm around his, a look of relief on her face.
"Alan, the proudest thing in my life is having the honor of being your mentor!"
...
Three days later.
At the military dock on the shores of Saddle Lake.
Alan stood on the pier, his hands behind his back, reviewing the navy.
Twenty large assault boats were ready.
Eight hundred special forces soldiers were ready to go.
The actual combat training was about to begin when Alan suddenly called a halt.
"No need for training."
"Just looking at everyone's spirits, I know there's no problem."
"Akira, lead the soldiers to lunch. The battle will begin promptly at 1 p.m."
Akira was stunned. "Godfather! Isn't there a seven-day deadline?"
Alan sent a letter ordering the Naga to surrender within ten days.
At most, it's only the fourth day...
Alan smiled faintly, patted the orc chieftain on the shoulder, and said:
"In my letter of surrender, I gave him a ten-day deadline, which is good."
"However, I didn't specify which ten days it was."
"According to the Silver Moon Secret Realm's time scale, twelve days have already passed. Are you taking action now? Am I not being lenient enough?"
Akira was stunned!
It took him a long time to come back to his senses, and he gave a thumbs-up.
"Godfather is so wise! He's truly so wise!"
A ball of light appeared in the air.
A small "Li" character flickered.
Alan grasped the ball of light and read his sister's letter.
He learned that she, Ella, and Renée had already departed from the Silvermoon Secret Realm on griffins.
They should be here in two hours at most to meet him.
Pantheon and his daughter, upon hearing from Kelly that Alan was going to war with the Naga, also wanted to lend a hand.
Alan asked his sister to tell his teacher and senior sisters not to worry about such trivial matters and to focus on their cultivation.
He had summoned his sister, Ella, and Renée to test their cultivation achievements through actual combat.
Alan himself needed to be tested as well.
Strategically, despise the enemy; tactically, take him seriously.
A famous quote from a great man in his past life surfaced in his mind.
So, did he really take his enemies seriously enough?
Alan reflected deeply and shook his head gently.
What if the Naga had a backup plan?
He certainly understood the principle of "better safe than sorry."
He calmed his impetuous emotions.
Alan called up the system page and selected the Martial Arts Fusion option.
Beep—
"Do you want to spend 6 potential points to fuse the 1st-level 'Thunder Wave' with the 5th-level 'Ice Soul Palm' to create a 6th-level ice-based martial art?"
This prompt had appeared a long time ago.
Back then, Alan had just reached Rank 4 and was short on potential. He felt no need to synthesize a 6th-level martial art, so he put it aside.
Now, his potential inventory had reached 11 points.
It was time to splurge!
Alan selected a combined martial art.
After some calculations, the system presented the result.
…
Unnamed 6th-level Ice-type Martial Art: Consumes 14 mana points. This skill spreads within a 10-meter radius, centered on the player, dealing twice as much cold damage as "Ice Soul Palm."
This skill has the following special effects:
· Freeze: Creatures within the range are frozen in cold air, their bodies covered in ice, and their movement is restricted.
· Fire Extinguishing: Fire magic below level 6 or fire-type martial arts below level 6 within the range are suppressed and instantly extinguished.
· Damage Increase: This skill deals double damage to Fire-type, Water-type, Aquatic, Amphibious, and Liquid-type creatures.
…
Alan took a deep breath, calming his excitement.
After a little thought, he named this 6th-level ice-based martial art, which inherited the basic structure of "Thunder Wave" and incorporated the characteristics of "Ice Soul Palm", "Ice Soul Freezing Wave"!