Fire Mage

Chapter 381: Elf

Charles reappeared in the cloudy sky, cast [Red Wings] spell, and flew towards the western mountain range.

The mountain range had a name called 'Godland's Stairs.'

Unlike the normal mountain range, this mountain range was divided into seven layers.

The first layer of mountains was around 700 to 1000 meters tall and was easy to climb.

But from the next layer, the mountains' height would increase exponentially.

At the end of the seventh layer, one had to climb more than 20,000 meters to reach the summit of God's Mountain!

That's where the Rebirth Star main temple and FireBird main temple were located!

As Charles flew about the dense forest, he started to feel a cold sensation.

If he were an average human, he would be shivering by now.

But due to his strengthened body, he hardly felt any feeling.

Then, he also noticed a change in the surrounding vegetation like most of the tree leaves appeared pale yellow, and there were some trees with no leaves!

As he flew closer towards the mountain range, he even saw snow appearing in the first layer's summit.

'Man, I thought this whole dimension would be a fire-elemental one.' He muttered under his breath as he stopped near the mountain range and looked up at the sky.

After that, he flapped those two fire wings, flew upward while evading some birds' attacks, and soon reached the summit in a few minutes.

But he didn't stop there and continued to fly towards the next layer of mountains!

He continued to fly while crossing the snowy mountain layers one by one and soon reached the final layer.

But unlike the other layers, there was only one mountain that appeared in front of his eyes.

But the single mountain had entered the dark clouds and seemed to have reached the starless sky!

As he stood at a mountain's summit, Charles noticed that the air got chillier and made it harder for him to breathe.

Although he didn't face any monsters or Magical Beasts, he did see two Protectors along the way.

Thankfully, those two Protectors didn't attack him, unlike the previous one, and left him alone.

Casting those thoughts, Charles cast [Sun's Shield] spell on himself and made preparations.

First, he took out a black dagger from his space ring, released a single invisible string, and let it encircle the hint area.

The next instant, the whole black dagger turned transparent and soon disappeared from his eyes.

After that, he also took out the [Starfall Codex] Magic book and held it in his hand.

Then, he took a deep breath to calm down his mind and continued to fly.

After another few minutes of flying, he finally reached the summit of God's Mountain and hovered in front of two tall buildings.

The right side was a dome-shaped building with four conical pillars, while the other side was a free-standing building.

Upon seeing this, he subconsciously turned his gaze towards the left side and soon smiled.

Even though the front wall blocked most of the temple's base, he noticed the pyramidal-shaped spire, side hallways, and two frontal pillars and confirmed that this was the main temple of Rebirth Star.

He also saw that both temples were separated by another stone wall and soon nodded as he recalled the information he read in the inscriptions.

'They seemed to have worshipped the same God, but followed different religious customs and laws. So, that caused division among the believers, resulting in the formation of two types of sub-religions.' He felt that was the possible explanation.

The majority of the worshipers worshipped the idol of the Fire Bird and even did sacrificial offering rituals to please God.

But the minority felt that worshipping their God in the form of some bird's idol was unlawful.

Instead, they drew the portrait of the Red Sun and started worshipping them.

For them, the one who saved their planet was not some bird but the Sun itself!

While thinking, Charles soon landed in front of the left side temple's entrance and arrived in front of the metallic gate.

Then, he raised both of his hands, placed them on it, and pushed them open.

A loud screeching noise came from the gate due to the rust, followed by multiple bell sounds.

Charles soon stepped inside, walked on the courtyard, and soon arrived near the courtyard altar.

Although it was just an elevated platform with nothing on it, Charles felt some divine power around it!

'Is this the remnant power of a God?' He extended his hand and tried to touch it.

But the next instant, a burning sensation appeared around his hand and even harmed his skin to some extend!

Within two seconds, blisters and reddish burn marks appeared all over his hand!

Meanwhile, Charles wore a startled look and instantly retracted his hand.

Then, he conjured a ball of greenish-blue flame and healed his hand.

After that, he turned his gaze towards the forecourt and was about to move forward but stopped.

At that moment, he suddenly noticed that a humanoid figure was moving towards him from inside.

'Protector?' He hurriedly took a few steps back and moved towards the courtyard's center.

Simultaneously, he cast [Arcane Eyes] skill on that figure and analyzed it.

On the other hand, a 2-meters tall young woman in her late 20s walked out of the temple and stared at him coldly.

Her smooth skin appeared golden, and she tied her long emerald hair into a bundle. She had a beautiful oval face, almond blue eyes, elongated eyebrows, and long ears.

Yes, she was an elf!

Her beautiful melons appeared a little budging due to the golden armor, and she looked more like a warrior woman!

She wore a short skirt, boots, and a pair of silver bracelets, a tiara, and a long sword in her hand.

As Charles analyzed her, he suddenly let out a painful groan and covered his eyes with both hands!

At that moment, blood mixed with tears dripped down from the corner of his eyes.

When he used [Arcane Eyes] skill on her, not only did he not find a single clue about her strength, but he also received a skill backlash!

'Damn it!' He cursed inwardly and instantly released his wisdom power.

Although it could only cover 10 meters of the surroundings, he felt it was necessary.

Simultaneously, he released thousands of invisible strings, let them spread around his surroundings like a gigantic spider net, and got ready for any unexpected attack.

But to his shock, no such sneak attack happened!

"Heal your wounds. I won't shamelessly attack a blind mortal." A cold voice echoed in his ears.

In the meantime, Charles froze for a second and frowned.

'A noble lady?'

After some thought, he nodded his head, conjured another ball of greenish-blue flame, and healed his eyes.

After, he opened his eyes, stared at the young woman, and asked.

"Are you the protector of this Temple?"

To his shock, the young woman blinked her blue eyes twice and responded with a nod.

"Yes. I'm an 11th Protector of Rebirth Temple and also the holder of the Fire Bird's Heart." She paused for a moment and asked.

"You came here for its heart, right?"

Meanwhile, Charles got startled inside and nodded.

"If so, show me your worth, mortal. If you want the Fire Bird's Heart, you have to defeat me or kill me first." She said with a smile.

That mere smile appeared so pure and innocent!

Meanwhile, Charles started to frown and soon shook his head.

"You are a Rank-6 Mystic, My Lady. Although I'm strong enough to face a Rank-5 individual, I'm not even close enough to stand in front of a Rank-6 individual." He said with a solemn tone.

What he said was the actual truth!