Chapter 1: The Awakening of the Young Man! Thaumaturgy, Bloodline Power!

  Aiqi Kingdom south, Koro Lin town mining area No. 3 red copper mine cave.

  "Damn it... this one should be enough..."

  Deep in the mine, Ailin's body was drenched in sweat as he clutched the iron pick tightly, propping up his nearly collapsing body, panting heavily.

  This is a frail young man, with a slightly immature face covered in dirt, but the eyes under the thick eyebrows are exceptionally bright. Even when he grits his teeth and stares at the ore in front of him, they still shine with sunshine and optimism.

  "Damn it, I've had enough, there's no other way!"

  Suddenly, a resolute look flashed across his eyes.

  "Whoa!" With a loud shout, all his attention focused on his hands. Taking advantage of the moment when countless invisible particles seemed to gather in the air around his hands, he, who had been exhausted to the extreme, suddenly swung his iron hammer again and slammed it down fiercely!

  "Right!"

  A burst of flames erupted.

  The rocks on the mine wall finally fell down after swaying precariously.

  "Look at my Awakening power, I've finally dug up enough minerals... Ha..."

  In the dark mine tunnel, there was first an explosion of Elin's triumphant and proud cheers.

  Next came his anguished cry, "Ah! My foot! It hurts so much!"

  From a distance in the mine tunnel, a faint burst of laughter soon spread: "Ailin, that little guy, was again carelessly hit on the foot by the ore he had pried loose."

  "Haha, this is already the third time this month, two more times and I can break last month's record."

  "Can't you be more careful? You've gone and hurt your own foot again."

  ……

  As dusk fell, a frail figure emerged from the mine exit, covered in stench and sweat, so exhausted that he could hardly stand upright. His two arms hung down like soft noodles as Ailin hobbled out of the mine and returned to the somewhat dilapidated town of Korolin, entering the only clinic in town, Aunt Emma's Clinic.

  "Aunt Emma, I'm here."

  "Little Ailin, old cheat still the same, not dead yet?" Generally, when people in town greeted him, they would start with such a sentence. Today, Aunt Emma also greeted him without exception.

  "I also wish he were dead, but he's still alive and well."

  "If you hadn't bought him medicine and taken care of him all these years, he would have died long ago."

  "But can't just watch him die?"

  "So you want him dead... Hmm, what's with your foot? I thought it was already healed when you came yesterday. Did you hurt it again today?"

  "Cough... cough... Not at all, old wounds acting up again... old wounds acting up again..."

  Arlin, with a gloomy and ashamed face, carried a bag of medicine out of the clinic, and returned home amidst concerned voices saying "Old cheat is still the same, huh? Little Arlin, you accidentally hurt your foot again, remember to be more careful next time."

  His home was under a mound in the south of the town, with a small courtyard surrounded by bamboo fences.

  As Ailin pushed open the creaking gate, an old man with a head full of white hair was sitting beside a simple stone table in the courtyard.

  The old man was tall and gaunt, with a pale face and skin that was covered in the marks of years. He looked very aged. His clothes were made from the same canvas bags as Ailin's, but his were cleaner.

  "Haha..." As soon as he saw Ailin limping, the old man was stunned for a moment, then holding his belly and laughing so hard that his body bent over: "Indeed, it can't be avoided..."

  "Where did you come from? You need to take your medicine!"

  Ailin tossed the medicine package into the old man's arms, who was gloating over his misfortune, and then sat down with a plop. Without even bothering to wipe her hands clean, she picked up a hard bread from the stone table and started gnawing on it, muttering dejectedly: "The ore in the mine is getting less and less, and digging for ore is getting harder and harder."

  "But I've already woken up, and from now on, even if mining becomes more difficult, it should be no problem for the two of us to make a living." After taking two bites of bread, Ailin's gloomy expression was swept away, and she looked somewhat pleased.

  "What a freak! No wonder it took me so many years to find this guy, who can still be so happy and optimistic in such an environment."

  The old man narrowed his eyes and smiled, glancing at Ailin's hands which looked soft and weak to the point of being unable to lift them up. He said: "It seems that you couldn't help but use your magic again today. However, I recall telling you many times before that when both physical and mental strength have reached their limits, forcibly using magic will put a heavy burden on the body. In severe cases, it's possible to die."

  "...and still have to support myself and this old cheat..." Ailin snorted disdainfully, "And only occasionally use it."

  "Alright, you reckless and eccentric young man. Now that you've awakened to this extent." The old man smiled slightly, "It's also time for me to tell you the truth."

  Ailin looked at the old man: "What truth? Is it that you are going to die?"

  "Bastard...do you really want me to die?"

  "That's not it, I worry about not being able to afford a burial site."

  "Listen up, you guy. My test and trial of you are over now. Tomorrow, you can prepare to go to Sheng Li Ming College."

  "Trials and tribulations? Cough cough..." Ailin was choked by the dry bread, a fit of violent coughing. "Old cheat, what nonsense are you spouting again?"

  The old man looked at Ailin and said, "Alright, let's start with the nickname 'Old Cheat'. Tell me why you call me that."

  "That's because seven years ago when I picked you up, you said you would teach me and pass on the methods to become a powerful magician, but in these seven years, you've just been lazy and haven't taught me any training methods. That's why everyone is used to calling you Old Cheat." Ailin also looked at the old man with a sullen expression and said: "It seems that your brain really has problems today, actually asking me such questions."

  The old man smiled slightly: "But since you say I'm a lazy and greedy old cheat, why don't you get rid of me?"

  "If you abandon it, no one will take care of it. Even if you pick up a stray cat or dog, you can't just throw it away and let it starve to death, right?"

  "You're an idiot, comparing me to a stray cat or dog!" The old man shook his head helplessly. "Have you ever thought about what the southern region calls Kololin Town? A forgotten abandoned town! Since the iron ore in Kololin was depleted, only some barren copper mines were left behind, which even the most incompetent lord wouldn't choose. Only some old miners and townspeople who couldn't make a living elsewhere would stay here. Even a homeless vagrant beggar wouldn't dare to cross the desolate abandoned mine area and come here, especially on a cold snowy night!"

  ……

  The night has fallen, and the stars are shining brightly.

  Half of the bread fell from Ailing's mouth.

  "That makes sense." Ailin stared blankly at the old man, who looked somewhat different from his usual self during peacetime. "Old Gins, are you serious?"

  "You can also see that I'm serious, otherwise you wouldn't be calling me Old Gins, but rather Old Cheater."

  "Could you really be a master?" Ailin muttered to herself in disbelief, then shook her head again: "Impossible! Conspiracy, absolutely conspiracy. If you really want to teach me to become a powerful wizard on the continent of Dorast as you said, why didn't you teach me how to train my body and martial arts for these seven years?"

  "There is one more fundamental thing that determines a technician's power from the very beginning."

  "This is the most fundamental thing, it's the power of bloodline!"

  Old King's face showed a proud expression, and his tone became more and more excited and fanatical: "Pure giant bloodline, born with incredible physical strength, boundless power! Pure beastman bloodline, born with the power of frenzy, possessing unbelievable instantaneous explosive force! Pure elf bloodline, extremely agile, moving like the wind, and naturally possessing high concentration, far surpassing ordinary people in the use of magic. As for various dragon bloodlines, the body's strength and usable magic are even more powerful!"

  "In that case, you've told me this at least twenty times in the past two months." Ailing's gloomy voice rose: "And what does it have to do with me? I'm just an ordinary human being. Looks like you're not clear-headed from your illness, time for you to take some medicine."

  "You idiot!"

  Although it was clear that Ailin was an unusual young man who couldn't be inferred by common sense, the passionate narrative was interrupted by a sentence from Ailin, and Old Gins couldn't help but feel a strong urge to vomit: "I've told you many times, various bloodline powers are equivalent to various extra talents. Although the pure human bloodline doesn't have any special bloodline power, it's the best fusion with other bloodlines! After the Dragon War, many powerful pure bloodlines became less and less, many bloodlines merged multiple times, and their descendants continued to multiply until now, and their bloodline powers are no longer visible. In an era where most mages didn't have particularly powerful bloodline powers from the beginning, a mage who had strong bloodline power support from the start would naturally stand out easily!"

  "But does this really have anything to do with me..." Elin's weak voice sounded again.

  Old Jin's anger burst forth: "Can't you think a little bit?! You still don't understand after all this time. These seven years, these seven years, the hardships I've brought upon you, including the stories and experiences I've shared with you, were all part of my training for you. Every single cell in your body has been in an extremely malnourished state due to long-term lack of sufficient nutrients and extreme fatigue every day. That's why you're thinner and weaker than your peers, looking two years younger than them, only awakening at this age. But precisely because of this, if your body absorbs the power of other bloodlines, it will definitely be many times stronger than ordinary people!"

  Aileen's suddenly bright and clear expression: "I understand."

  Old Kings let out a breath, thinking that Ailin would finally say what he wanted to say.

  "I get it!" But Ailin's next sentence almost made him faint: "Old Gins, you pervert! You not only deceive children's emotions, but the only thing you've done in these seven years is to ruin the bodies of little friends!"