Chapter 421: Dropping the Act, Just Try and Touch Me!

Chapter 421: No More Pretending—Try Touching Me If You Dare!

Victor walked ahead.

Li Wei trailed two steps behind, secretly on high alert and ready for battle at any moment.

Victor asked, “I heard you’re a member of the Hall of Truth in the Elemental Tower?”

Upon hearing this, Li Wei was somewhat surprised—he hadn’t expected such a question.

He replied, “Yeah, just doing odd jobs at the Hall of Truth. Nothing much.”

Victor chuckled. “Great Mage Li Wei, don’t be so modest. The Solar Research Laboratory within the Hall of Truth has collaborated with the Spatial Tower. I know very well what role you played inside that lab.”

Li Wei felt awkward; he hadn’t realized Victor knew everything.

He was also taken aback—the research on Solars was so critical, yet the Elemental Tower had actually partnered with an external faction to study it.

Thinking about it, though, it made sense.

Solars originated from the sun of the Astral Realm.

Who better than space mages to venture there and collect them?

Seeing no point in hiding anymore, Li Wei came straight to the point. “Elder Victor, why did you summon me here?”

Victor smiled inwardly. *Just as I thought.*

He clapped his hands lightly and said, “Of course. While exploring the outer world, the Spatial Tower accidentally discovered a peculiar substance capable of rapidly enhancing both physical strength and magical power in mages.”

Li Wei looked at him doubtfully. “What does that have to do with me?”

Victor continued, “Let me finish first.”

“This material possesses one extremely unique trait—it can indeed boost a mage’s body and magic swiftly, but it causes assimilation symptoms, turning those who use it into monsters.”

“We want to eliminate its side effects.”

Li Wei shook his head. “Then you should go find alchemists or potion masters. That’s not my field.”

Victor stopped walking and turned back to stare intently at Li Wei.

They locked eyes for a while before Victor finally looked away and said, “After extensive research, the Spatial Tower eventually developed a method to remove the adverse effects of Purple Crystal Essence.”

“That is—to separate Nitro from his original world and let him consume Starstones imbued with Astral Radiation in the Prime Material Plane. Through Nitro’s powerful adaptability, we neutralize the astral radiation attached to the Starstones, thus obtaining pure Purple Crystal Essence.”

“Mage Li Wei, you currently possess the Purple Crystal Essence, correct?”

Victor fixed his gaze directly on Li Wei.

Li Wei denied everything outright. “Purple Crystal Essence? What's that? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Besides, Nitro died in the forbidden spell—I had nothing to do with that.”

“For all you know, whatever Purple Crystal Essence you're talking about might already have been destroyed by the force of the forbidden spell.”

Victor studied Li Wei for a few moments longer, then laughed softly. “That possibility certainly exists, Mage Li Wei.”

Li Wei frowned slightly. “If Nitro was your experimental subject, why risk setting the arena for the exchange competition right where he was?”

Victor explained, “Nitro needed external stimulation to fully absorb the energy of the Starstones.”

Now Li Wei understood—they were using the competitors as catalysts.

Suddenly, he recalled the fragment of the forbidden spell hidden beneath the stone bridge.

An alarming idea struck him.

Perhaps the Spatial Tower deliberately placed that fragment there, intending to detonate it at the last second to erase all traces.

But Li Wei realized something else—the Spatial Tower probably wouldn’t dare kill every single participant.

Before the power of the forbidden spell could erupt, everyone would likely be teleported off the island.

That must have been why access to the fragment was restricted until the final hour.

In truth, from the beginning, the forbidden spell fragment wasn’t part of the competition at all.

It served merely as a means to cleanse the island.

However, things took an unexpected turn during the match.

Li Wei cast Meteor Fireball, destroying the entire island.

Killing Nitro.

Ending the competition prematurely.

To this day, members within the Spatial Tower still wonder whether the forbidden spell fragment’s power was triggered early.

And that wasn’t impossible.

The fragment itself was incomplete, unstable in nature.

There was always a chance it could activate unexpectedly.

Most ironically, the forbidden spell recorded on the fragment was "Starfall."

Starfall was essentially a supercharged version of Meteor Shower.

Li Wei’s Meteor Fireball bore a striking resemblance to Starfall.

So now even Victor couldn’t tell if the fragment had malfunctioned or not.

Victor said, “Even if you hold the Purple Crystal Essence, it won’t help without the formula—you can't brew it into a potion yourself.”

“Hand over the Purple Crystal Essence, and afterward, the Spatial Tower will give you a vial of refined Purple Crystal Potion.”

Li Wei shook his head firmly. “Sorry, but I don’t have what you claim I stole.”

Victor’s expression darkened. “I’ve told you more than enough. If you still refuse to show restraint, don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

“Heh, trespassing into the core research zones of the Spatial Tower, stealing classified information regarding the Purple Crystal Essence—even the Elemental Tower couldn’t protect you then.”

Victor issued a clear threat.

Li Wei suddenly grasped it—all that Victor had said earlier was merely preparation for this moment.

No wonder he revealed such crucial secrets so suddenly.

It was all leading up to this.

Whether Li Wei actually stole anything mattered little now—he already knew too much about the Spatial Tower’s secret research involving the Purple Crystal Essence. They couldn’t possibly allow him to walk free after learning their secrets.

The threats had become open and direct.

Li Wei dropped all pretense.

Time to lay it all out!

With a laugh, Li Wei said, “Elder Victor, guess what I found inside the secret realm?”

Victor stared at him closely. “Oh? So you’re ready to admit it? Why didn’t you just say so instead of making me waste breath…”

Li Wei cut him off. “No, no, no—you misunderstood.”

“What I found is far more exciting than some Purple Crystal Essence.”

Victor raised an eyebrow, puzzled, staring at Li Wei with curiosity.

Suddenly, he realized.

His expression changed, staring at Li Wei, "Fragments of Forbidden Magic?"

Li Wei smiled, his right hand flicked, and the fragments of forbidden magic appeared in his palm.

"You guessed correctly, unfortunately there's no prize."

He glanced around, asking, "Guess what would happen if a forbidden spell were to explode here?"

Victor's face turned extremely ugly.

Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed, the fragments of forbidden magic in Li Wei's hand vanished without a trace.

The fragments of forbidden magic appeared in his own hand.

Victor's face showed a smile, "Hehe, you don't actually think this alone could threaten me, do you?"

That previous expression was merely put on for Li Wei's benefit.

Knowing that Li Wei had actually picked up the fragments of forbidden magic, he was indeed very surprised.

But it wasn't to the point of having no countermeasures at all.

Li Wei also smiled, "You want them? I have more here, plenty to spare."

He flipped both hands, crossing them over his chest, each hand clutching a handful of fragments of forbidden magic.

Victor's smile froze.

He squeezed hard, the fragments of forbidden magic in his hand shattered, transforming into magical sparkles that dissipated into the air.

These were merely creations of illusion magic.

(End of Chapter)