In the northwest corner of the Imperial City, there stood a luxurious manor full of classical charm. Outside the manor were guards dressed in silver armor who patrolled the area in a thorough manner. This showed that the master of the manor must be of noble status.

Those who were familiar with the situation in the Imperial City knew that the master of this manor was the fourth prince of the royal family, who was most likely to take over the throne five years later.

However, the fourth prince was currently not in a great mood. Beside him were five mysterious Wizards, all dressed in uniform colors. Most of them had a deadpan look, and only one of them was kneeling on the ground with one knee, bowing to the fourth prince.

"Your Royal Highness the fourth prince, I didn't complete what you asked this time. Please punish me, my lord!"

The fourth prince was tall and large in build, and his appearance was somewhat similar to the eighth prince's, only he had a head of short hair as red as flames, and looked as if he was filled with a strange kind of magic.

"Wizard Oden, get up. It wasn't your fault this time. It was my own insufficient planning – I didn't expect this Merlin of the Dark Magic Region to surpass my expectations. To think that not even Wizard Oden is a match for him."

The fourth prince wrinkled his brow slightly. Oden was the ninth Wizard and was one of the strongest Wizards under his command. He thought that by sending Oden he would be able to kill off Snake Elder and the rest, thus eliminating a portion of the eighth prince's forces. Nonetheless, he did not expect the sudden appearance of the stranger Merlin, resulting in Wizard Oden's defeat.

Ninth Wizard Oden raised his head slowly, saying in a careful manner, "Your Royal Highness the fourth prince, Merlin's powers aren't that strong in reality. At best, he's equivalent to a Fifth-level Spell Caster, and this is by relying on the might of Pandora Demon Ability! He must've quite a few Pandora Demon Abilities. To be able to enhance Darkness-type spells to such a powerful stage – only the Pandora Demon Ability, Darkness Heart of Abyss Fort can do that… If one has formidable Mind Power and doesn't fear his Darkness-type spells, then Merlin is no one to be afraid of!"

On his way back, Wizard Oden thought about it carefully. Merlin's strength lay in his Darkness-type spells. Moreover, the illusory effects of Darkness-type spells were nothing to be scared of, in fact. Spell Casters with powerful Mind Power would be able to overcome it.

Once Merlin's Darkness-type spells were overcome, any Sixth-level Wizard would be able to suppress Merlin!

The fourth prince raised an eyebrow and paced around without stopping.

"Wizard Oden, have you found out why the eighth prince had sent Snake Elder and the rest to such a backwater place like Prakash City?"

Oden trembled inwardly, and said solemnly, "Honorable fourth prince, I've investigated the matter. The eighth prince had sent Snake Elder and the rest to Prakash City in order to locate Merlin. Merlin is Wizard Leo's most prized student in the Dark Magic Region. The eighth prince's true objective is self-evident…"

The fourth prince blurted out, "It's to enlist Wizard Leo?"

After a pause, a cold smile stretched across the fourth prince's lips. "Hehe, that awful younger brother of mine is so naïve. It's only Leo by himself – so what if he's killed a Seventh-level Wizard? Ultimately, he's only a Sixth-level Spell Caster, whereas I have the promises of Wizard Tanin and Wizard Morston. These two Wizards are powerful Eighth-level Spell Casters…"

"Your Royal Highness the fourth prince, the eighth prince had no way of enticing a powerful Spell Caster, so at best he could only enlist Leo… However, his forces are still enormous, and he's still the biggest threat to my lord in the Imperial City. My lord, don't hesitate anymore – it's better to make a move as soon as possible!"

One of the mysterious Wizards spoke in a low voice.

"There's no rush. Wizard Tanin and Wizard Morston need a few days to reach the Imperial City. Attacking with these two Wizards would be a safer bet! Still, this Leo – just because he killed a Seventh-level Spell Caster, he thinks he can interfere with the matters of the royal family? Humph, I'll kill his favorite student first. If he learns his place and retreat, it'll save us some trouble. If he still insists on helping that naïve younger brother of mine, then I can only kill him as well!"

The gaze of the fourth prince swept across the Wizards, following which a slight smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He focused his gaze and spoke to a Wizard who was wearing terrifying earrings in the shape of tiny snakes, "To eliminate Merlin, I'll have to trouble the seventh Wizard this time!"

The seventh Wizard said respectfully, "Els is willing to serve Your Royal Highness!"

With that, seventh Wizard Els turned around quickly and instantly vanished from their sight.

Wizard Oden looked at the disappearing figure of the seventh Wizard Els and heaved a small sigh of relief. "Wizard Els' Mind Power is powerful enough, comparable to a Spell Caster at the peak of the Seventh-level. The Darkness-type spells of that Merlin would have no way of affecting Wizard Els no matter what!"

The fourth prince nodded as well, evidently having the utmost confidence in the seventh Wizard.

"Oh, naïve younger brother of mine, why did you bother challenging in the start? It's all worked out now, and you only have a few days to live…"

A smile tugged at the corner of the fourth prince's mouth, but his eyes were filled with a piercing cold!

…

"Hum."

Merlin shook all over, following which endless Fire Element surged into his surroundings quickly as if a huge expanse of flames had engulfed Merlin.

The Fire Element was frantically absorbed by the Spell Model of Condensed Fire, which he had just successfully constructed, into his Awareness, and then quickly transformed into Magic Power.

Due to the Flame Maxim, Merlin's rate of Fire Element absorption was rather astonishing. Although it was not as fast as using elemental crystal stones to transform Magic Power, it was not too far behind.

Based on this speed, Merlin would only need to consolidate the spell for one or two days. He did not even need to use elemental crystal stones to accumulate sufficient Magic Power in the Spell Model of Condensed Fire.

These were all benefits of the Flame Maxim! Moreover, although Merlin was still a long way from creating his own Flame Maxim, his constant awareness of the Flame Maxim had allowed him to deepen his understanding of fire. This was also highly useful to his casting of spells.

"Condensed Fire!"

Merlin waited for a moment. When he had accumulated enough Magic Power in the Spell Model of Condensed Fire for him to cast the spell a few times, he quickly cast the spell.

Instantly, a blaze the size of a fist materialized in the air. Under Merlin's control, it hovered steadily. It did not look astounding, and its temperature was not high, but Merlin, who was using his Mind Power to observe, knew very well that the might contained in this small ball of flames was nearly inconceivable.

This was especially so since the flames were white, which indicated that this was Fiery Collapse, compressed many times over. Once it landed on an opponent, the destruction it would wreck was hard to imagine.

The flame burned for a while, after which Merlin put it out. Although the power of Condensed Fire was great, the Magic Power it used up was astounding as well. He would need to accumulate sufficient Magic Power to cast continuously.

Merlin observed the Flame Maxim in his Awareness once more. He realized that ever since he entered the Imperial City, the Flame Maxim did not change in general, despite perpetually being suppressed faintly by a mysterious force in the Blackmoon Tower.

Since the Flame Maxim did not undergo any changes, Merlin did not further consider the issues of its suppression. He stayed on in the room, accumulating Magic Power in the Spell Model of Condensed Fire.

…

Five days later, a bright moon rose up high in the night sky.

"Swoosh!"

Merlin's eyes opened abruptly. He seemed to feel a restless, uneasy force surrounding his body, especially the Fire Element which swirled around ceaselessly, appearing very lively.

"What's happening? The suppression of the Flame Maxim has increased."

The uneasy feeling that Merlin had was the Flame Maxim in his Awareness. Compared to how it was a few days ago, the Flame Maxim seemed to have changed tonight, emitting a surprising force of the flames. This even caused the surrounding Fire Element to come alive, and such Fire Element was unfit to be turned into Magic Power.

"Snake Elder had said that on a night of the full moon, the Blackmoon Tower would be even more mystical… Could it be that the changes of the Flame Maxim are linked to the Blackmoon Tower under a full moon?"

Merlin looked toward the bright moonlight beyond the window and finally stood up. In a single motion, he vanished like the wind from the residence.

Having left the eighth prince's manor, Merlin wore a black Wizard robe and silently walked toward the Blackmoon Tower alone. The Blackmoon Tower was a landmark building of the Imperial City. No matter where one was in the Imperial City, one would be able to see it.

Merlin raised his head and looked toward the Blackmoon Tower – indeed, it had changed. The entire tower glowed in crimson light as if it had been dyed with blood. Furthermore, anyone would be able to feel that there was a strange source of magic in the tower, which could cause anyone to become mesmerized by it unwittingly.

"A full moon night…"

Merlin had a better understanding of what Snake Elder meant. The Blackmoon Tower, under a full moon, underwent a peculiar change. The blood-red light spilled from the Blackmoon Tower and shrouded most of the night sky. From a distance, even the pure bright moon in the sky seemed to turn the color of blood.

Although the Blackmoon Tower was very strange, the people of the Imperial City seemed to have gotten used to this common sight. There was even a night market, and a boisterous one at that, with countless people coming and going.

No one expressed concern about the Blackmoon Tower's fantastic appearance. The voices of the crowd bubbled over, making for a lively scene.

Merlin moved through the crowd and did not attract anyone's attention. There were far too many people who were dressed like Merlin, most of which were Spell Casters. In the Imperial City, many people have even gotten used to the sight of alpine Beast People, who would not be seen as odd.

Suddenly, Merlin stopped in his tracks. The closer he went to the Blackmoon Tower, the more the Flame Maxim in his Awareness seemed to stir restlessly. It even began to pulse gently.

In the past, no matter how much Merlin tried to stimulate the Flame Maxim, he could not induce such a change. However, the Blackmoon Tower, under the full moon now, seemed to have a mysterious power which affected the Flame Maxim.

Merlin frowned and looked carefully at the Blackmoon Tower in the distance. He did not approach any closer. After all, the Flame Maxim in his Awareness had become somewhat unstable. If he went closer, who knew what would happen?

If he had a chance, Merlin would like to take a good look around inside the Blackmoon Tower. Nonetheless, this was probably impossible. Great Wizards lived in the Blackmoon Tower, and no one would dare to break in.

"Forget about it. Even if there was some power or treasure in the Blackmoon Tower that's even greater than the Flame Maxim, I have no chance of getting it."

Merlin shook his head lightly, following which he turned and hurried back toward the eighth prince's manor.

However, after taking a few steps, he began shuddering all over, and an acute sense of danger welled up within him.

"There's danger ahead!"

In his peripheral vision, Merlin noticed that there was a tall, thin, unremarkable-looking man in the crowd, who was smirking in a strange manner…