Chapitre 31: Chapter 31: The Sun and the Moon
Li Xiang bent down, holding a powerful flashlight in one hand while brushing away the silt with the other, revealing an unusually smooth marble surface.
"The silt layer isn't thick enough. If a magic circle is set up on it, it won't remain stable. Even a slight water current could disrupt the magic circle. Large-scale magic circles have strict requirements for the pathways and nodes. If there's any shift, the effect would be compromised."
"Because this is an artificial lake, the lakebed is made of marble—smooth and stable. After destroying the magic circle, it could be easily concealed with silt, and soon there would be no trace left. So, the magic circle must have been set up on the lakebed, not in the silt."
After analyzing the situation, Li Xiang looked up at the dim surroundings. The lake stretched about a hundred meters long and thirty to forty meters wide—surprisingly large. However, the size of the magic circle is not fixed; it can range from a few dozen centimeters to hundreds of meters or even larger.
Elena surveyed the area. "If I were the one doing it, I would choose the center of the lake for the magic circle. The further out you go, the more likely it is to be discovered. The slope outside the lake is about forty meters from the center. If you're not paying close attention, you wouldn't notice the fluctuations of the magic circle."
"Then let's search outward from the center of the lake," Louis agreed with their assessment and began to float outward.
"Wait."
Elena stopped Louis. "You two stand behind me; I'll handle the silt first."
She began chanting softly.
The magic circle opened silently.
Like a breath, a long string of bubbles suddenly appeared, rising to the lake's surface.
The water began to flow slowly, then quickly accelerated. Under the flashlight's beam, it split into two, then four, and continued dividing until dozens of streams, like pale blue serpents, swirled around Elena.
She pushed her hands outward.
The magic circle expanded, and the water serpents rushed in all directions. The silt was pushed aside, layer upon layer, accumulating into mounds. In just a moment, the silt within a ten-meter radius was completely cleared.
Elena's body trembled slightly, and a faint sound of rushing wind was heard. Suddenly, a transparent light barrier expanded rapidly, enveloping the lakebed where the silt had been cleared.
"Quick, check it now. The water pressure is too strong, and the barrier won't last long. The lake water will soon flood back in."
Upon hearing this, Li Xiang and Louis stopped talking and each chose a direction to search.
Li Xiang headed east.
The silt was cleared thoroughly. Under the bright flashlight, he could clearly see the surroundings. He quickly covered the ten-meter distance but found nothing.
After a while, Li Xiang returned to join the others, but they hadn't found anything either.
"Could it be beyond the ten-meter range?" Louis asked.
"Possibly." Elena gazed at the distant darkness, feeling the situation was tricky. With her level of magic, it would be difficult to clear the entire lakebed, and doing so would create a lot of commotion.
Li Xiang closed his eyes, silently chanting the Rune of Light. A white light surged in his mind, and for an instant, his mind cleared.
"There's no doubt the magic circle has been destroyed. A meticulous person like that would never leave obvious traces."
Li Xiang opened his eyes, squatted down, and reached out to touch the marks on the marble surface. "These marks were formed over many years of water flow—tiny and ordinary. If it were me, I would disguise the traces to look like this."
Elena suddenly turned her head, her small face lighting up with excitement as her thoughts raced. "You're right! According to your analysis, the disguised marks would definitely be much newer. Time magic would be the best way to detect it, but the cost is too high. Moreover, for a magic circle of this caliber, it would likely require a Monarch's time magic. Is there any other magic?"
"Yes! Time-Revealing Magic! The Mineral Division's Time-Revealing Magic can reveal the age of minerals. But I haven't studied it. Have either of you?"
"Who would bother learning Time-Revealing Magic outside of the Mineral Division?" Louis shook his head helplessly.
"I did."
"?"
Louis looked at Li Xiang in confusion. "Why did you learn Time-Revealing Magic?"
Li Xiang smiled and said, "Because I'm not very strong, so I learned a lot of basic magic."
Of course, he didn't tell Louis that he had learned Time-Revealing Magic to prepare for finding mineral-based holy relics in the future, like the Round Table of the Knights of the Round Table in Britain.
"Alright, Li Xiang, start the spell."
Elena didn't ask any more questions, only feeling that this junior kept surprising her, and at this moment, she finally solidified a certain thought.
Li Xiang stepped forward, his magic circuits activated instantly. He pressed his palm down, and two magic circles appeared on the marble, immediately expanding.
When the magic circle covered the ten-meter radius, a blinding light burst forth, rising about seven or eight centimeters from the ground. Countless tiny marks floated like chaotic strands in the water.
"Leave only the most translucent lines, and hide the rest," Elena instructed.
Li Xiang nodded and followed her orders.
Finally, the chaotic strands became clear.
He squinted instinctively, and a star map appeared before him. It resembled the solar system diagram from his high school geography class but was more abstract. However, the sun was clearly in the center, with Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune arranged around it.
"Wait, why is there one extra?"
"It's the Moon," Elena responded, deep in thought.
The Moon?
In the solar system, the Moon is relatively insignificant. Why would the Moon be included?
Li Xiang's eyes lit up.
The Twin Tower of Eizelm!
The magic of the Eizelm family in the Department of Creation is based on the sun and moon. With the arrival of Aoko Aozaki and the unfolding of events, the banquet where the Golden Princess and Silver Princess will appear is imminent.
So, the one stealing the leyline's mana is likely Eizelm. As the head of the Department of Creation, Elnoyle Baluereta Atolohom's management of the branch family and their collaboration with the main family would make it easy to conceal their actions from the entire Department of Fundamentals.
What is this magic circle for?
Li Xiang regretted not reading the original novel earlier. He only had a rough idea of the plot from other people's summaries but didn't know the details.
Lost in thought, he felt the water around him start to shake—the barrier from earlier had broken, and the lake water began to flood back in. The star map disappeared, leaving only the outer shell of the water-repelling magic to protect the three of them.
"Investigation complete."
Elena's voice drew his attention. "Our task is finished; the rest is up to the captain. Let's go meet the captain outside."
"Huh, the captain is outside?" Louis asked in surprise.
"Do you think the captain wouldn't think of what we did?" Elena gave him a look and said, "Without the captain's arrangements, we wouldn't have been able to inspect the leyline so easily."
Li Xiang touched his nose, somewhat surprised. Watching Elena walk away, he ran over to Louis and said, "This senior seems to have a rather complicated background."
"Of course, she's a well-known figure in our Department of Law and Politics," Louis replied without hesitation.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone