My System Just Exploded, And You Ask Me to Become a God?-Chapter 45 --Giant Parrot

"Seriously? You’re trying to steal mana from me?"

Joad’s face twisted in annoyance as he intensified his mana absorption.

The two opposing forces battled in secret, both refusing to yield an inch. Within just half an hour, the surrounding magical elements had been nearly drained dry.

Joad glanced into the distance, utterly baffled.

Who the hell is this? Are they that desperate? Fighting me over such a tiny bit of mana?

Muttering to himself, he dashed in the direction of the interference. As he spread out his mind power, an odd feeling immediately crept over him.

There, beneath a cascading waterfall deep in a nearby valley, a giant parrot rested silently atop a towering tree.

Its body radiated powerful magical waves, but its aura was unstable—clearly, the creature was injured.

Beneath the massive tree, bright red blood had pooled into a small crimson pond.

The giant parrot seemed to sense Joad’s presence and began scanning its surroundings, eyes alert and wary.

"What the—why the heck is the parrot here so big?" Joad whispered in disbelief.

And almost at the exact same moment, the giant parrot also locked onto Joad’s presence.

Its magical aura surged violently—rising to the level of an archmage.

Wonderful. Even a parrot had reached archmage rank these days.

If Headmaster Simar found out, would he be ashamed enough to lower his head in embarrassment?

After all, this bird was now stronger than him.

Wait a second... Could this be the terrifying magical beast Harvey mentioned?

Though it didn’t emit any traces of abyssal corruption, rumors always had a tendency to evolve as they spread. Precision wasn’t really required when panic was involved.

So... the terrifying magical beast actually did exist. It just wasn’t him.

Joad exhaled in relief.

And then, the parrot opened its beak wide—and spat out an enormous fireball.

Its target: none other than Joad.

The wave of scorching heat rushed toward him, forcing a slight frown onto Joad’s face.

Jokes aside, that fireball contained an intense concentration of magical elements. Even those elites from the Pyrothian Kingdom wouldn’t be able to block it easily.

Still, Joad didn’t panic.

With a flicker of focus, he summoned mana within his body and conjured a transparent magical shield in front of himself.

The next instant, the fireball crashed into the shield and was promptly bounced away.

But the giant parrot wasn’t done yet. With a flap of its wings, it launched itself toward him, claws glinting like blades beneath the sunlight.

What’s wrong with this bird? I just looked at it, and it’s already trying to kill me?

Joad furrowed his brow. He could tell the bird was no ordinary creature. If his guess was correct, this really was the same magical beast Harvey had mentioned earlier.

Knowing that, Joad immediately turned and walked away. He had no intention of continuing this pointless fight.

The brief clash had already confirmed the creature’s strength. Unless he was prepared to fight to the death, there was no point provoking it further.

Besides, so many people were already searching for this beast. It wasn’t going to vanish any time soon.

If he and the bird fought and both ended up injured, only for someone else to swoop in and claim the prize... he’d have lost everything.

No thanks.

With a flash of movement, Joad disappeared from the area.

In the blink of an eye, he had already reached the outer perimeter of the Skydome Mountains.

After he left, the valley returned to silence. The giant parrot retreated, wisely choosing to hide again rather than pursue him.

It didn’t want to fight either—not in its current injured state. It needed rest. Time to recover.

But Joad’s heart had been stirred.

If he could somehow capture a magical beast of archmage rank... how much would that be worth?

Whether he sold it to the military, or to a research institute, the rewards would be astronomical.

Still, he forced himself to calm down. The most important thing was ensuring no one else found out what he’d seen.

Even with that resolve, Joad couldn’t stop thinking about it. This was an incredible stroke of luck. A chance like this might never come again.

But he also knew that fighting in the open could attract unwanted attention.

Everyone already knew a terrifying magical beast had appeared in the Skydome Mountains. The rumors had created panic, and bounty hunters and scholars alike had flooded into the area, hoping to capture the creature.

Joad looked to the north. If this region had become a hotspot, he’d just have to switch locations. Meditation couldn’t stop.

Just as he was deciding where to head next, a voice called out from afar.

"Excuse me—please wait a moment!"

It was a clear, feminine voice, soft yet confident.

Joad turned and saw a young woman in her early twenties approaching. She wore an elegant long gown, her demeanor poised and refined.

She was clearly someone of high status.

Her magical aura showed she had already reached the rank of advanced elite mage—stronger than even Senior Leit in terms of raw power.

Of course, Leit’s talent far surpassed hers. The only reason his magic level hadn’t caught up was because he’d devoted so much time to studying magic arrays, becoming a formation master. That path slowed his combat progression.

Had Leit focused solely on combat spells, his magic level would likely be even higher by now.

Behind the young woman stood a middle-aged man, whose presence made Joad tense slightly.

The man had reached Level 2 of the lower archmage rank.

Since reaching the archmage stage, mages were no longer only divided into "low," "mid," and "high" tiers. Each tier was broken further into ten sub-levels.

For example, one would have to break through Level 10 of the lower tier before reaching mid-archmage.

That final step was like climbing the tip of a hundred-foot pole—it looked small, but it represented a massive leap in power.

Even a single sub-level made a significant difference in strength at this stage.

Trailing behind them was a teenage boy, about seventeen or eighteen, with unmistakable arrogance written all over his face.

"You called me?" Joad asked, his tone curious but calm.

He was a bit surprised but not remotely afraid.

Sure, that middle-aged man’s power was one rank higher than his own, but so what?

You think I trained all these years in escape spells for nothing? Joad thought.

There was no way they’d catch him.

The young woman stepped forward with a gentle smile and spoke softly.

"May I ask... what are you doing out here in the mountains?"