One minute later, the wizard airship quickly took off from the ground. A moon-wheel-like wizard airship rapidly ascended, causing numerous wizard instructors from various wizard organizations throughout Cloud Marsh Wetland to look up with regret as they watched the Cloud Marsh Cup champion pass them by.

If any of them could be lucky enough to sign a contract with the Cloud Marsh Cup champion, who knows how many KPIs they could achieve, and how many benefits their wizard organizations could obtain.

After all, for wizard organizations, a Cloud Marsh Cup champion was the best reason to apply for various subsidies and project support from the White Wizard Association!

...

In the Land of Six Towers, Alicia was handling various affairs within the Land of Six Towers. Because Grand Wizard Sulla had previously self-destructed the two power systems, the massive magical fluctuations had exposed the entrance to the Mage Plane. This led everyone in the Land of Six Towers to know that their Land of Six Towers actually controlled two medium-scale worlds.

This resulted in the intervention of the second wizard family in the Land of Six Towers, the Basil family.

Grand Wizard Sulla's fall also dealt a heavy blow to the Plutarch family. This caused people within the family to be in a state of panic. The Basil family had intentions of seizing power early before the handover, and the six high-grade noble families under the Plutarch family all had restless thoughts. The myriad complications piling together gave Alicia a severe headache.

Fortunately, she wasn't entirely without support.

Alicia looked toward a wall behind her in the office, which was covered with magic portraits, one of which was a portrait of Grand Wizard Sulla.

In this magic portrait, Grand Wizard Sulla wore wizard robes adorned all over with silver ornaments and sapphire and ruby pendants, standing straight with his left hand gripping a wizard sword, like a great general of a wizard legion leading troops into battle.

At this moment, Grand Wizard Sulla's soul walked out from within the magic portrait.

Grand Wizard Sulla smiled. "Uliel still lost to me by one step."

"I spent heavily in advance to obtain this magic portrait from a Second Circle magic portrait painter in Cloud Marsh Wetland. This magic portrait can store my soul and replace my body."

"I used the death substitution ability of the Dragon Scorpion bloodline. At the instant my two bodies perished, my soul was on the verge of destruction, and my magical power was severely damaged, I activated the death substitution ability and used bloodline power to transfer my soul into this magic portrait."

"In this way, my soul can continue to exist in this magic portrait, though it can only last for a maximum of thirty years, and thus I can never become a Second Circle wizard." Grand Wizard Sulla sighed. "But if I can make good use of these remaining thirty years, I can help you completely control the Land of Six Towers."

Grand Wizard Sulla rallied and comforted the sorrowful Alicia, saying, "Breaking through to Second Circle is itself a process where one either dies or gets injured. The breakthrough probability is extremely low, so there's no need to feel sad for me."

"Alicia, being able to retreat completely and survive is already quite good."

Grand Wizard Sulla's soul spread open his right hand. "Moreover, I still retain 9999 magical pressure. Although I currently cannot directly control the White Dragon Tower in the Land of Six Towers, as long as I work through you, I can still activate the White Dragon Tower's defensive formations, so the current situation can still be controlled."

"Using this magic portrait made by a Second Circle level expert speed painter, I'm stuck in a special state of neither living nor dying. However, I've lost at least half my magical power, and even so, I still have 9999 magical pressure." Grand Wizard Sulla couldn't help but sigh, thinking about how dire his previous condition had been.

No wonder his previous soul couldn't hold on any longer.

He couldn't break through the species limit a second time, but his magical power was so exaggerated that the situation was dangerous to the extreme.

Both he and Uliel had tried to use powerful energy to force their way through after the species limit arrived, and both of them ended up bursting themselves.

This approach had been proven wrong from start to finish.

Grand Wizard Sulla looked toward the sky outside the Land of Six Towers.

Alicia asked, "Grandfather, what are you looking at?"

Grand Wizard Sulla said, "If Uliel is still alive, he might actively attack our Land of Six Towers. I'm waiting for him."

"Forget it. He's probably already dead, or even if he's still alive, he wouldn't dare actively attack the Land of Six Towers. With the help of the six Faith Towers, let alone him, even if the Second Circle wizard teacher behind him personally came, I have ways to severely injure them."

"These six ancient wizard towers possess such powerful strength."

Someone knocked on the office door. Grand Wizard Sulla waved his hand, and immediately a First Circle level family wizard walked in.

This family wizard placed the letters he had received on the desks of Alicia and Grand Wizard Sulla. "Lady Alicia, Lord Sulla, we won, we won!"

Alicia and Sulla showed confused expressions.

Sulla asked, "Won what?"

This family wizard pointed at the letters on the desk. Immediately, Grand Wizard Sulla and Alicia both looked over, and both saw the information written on them.

It was a letter sent in advance by the Cloud Marsh Cup competition committee, informing the Land of Six Towers of the ranking results of this Cloud Marsh Cup competition.

Both saw in the first row that the team that won the Cloud Marsh Cup championship was actually led by Locke Augustine from the Land of Six Towers.

Alicia was stunned for a moment, then her face showed a happy smile. "First place?"

"I knew it. With Locke's abilities, he could do it."

"He's a genius."

Alicia said to Grand Wizard Sulla, "Grandfather, I told you long ago that this was possible, but at the time you didn't believe me at all and didn't take my words seriously. Now do you believe me!"

Grand Wizard Sulla was completely shocked. His soul stood frozen in place. He looked at the letter on the desk several more times, confirming he hadn't read the results backwards or mistaken last place for first place.

"First place?"

Grand Wizard Sulla's face showed an expression that questioned his life.

Was this a result that their sponsored team from the Land of Six Towers could achieve?

His best expectation for Locke was only that he could enter the top five. That would already be something to boast about greatly, a very impressive achievement for the Land of Six Towers, enough to give all the families an explanation.

If he could enter the top three, that would mean his luck had exploded and he had bet on the right treasure.

But now it was the championship!

Grand Wizard Sulla's eyebrows jumped. The Cloud Marsh Cup championship had extraordinary significance. Winning this kind of competition meant that the local White Wizard Association would receive rewards from headquarters, counting as no small achievement for the White Wizard Association.

It was an achievement in talent cultivation.

Secondly, there was the matter of Alicia's prestige.

Grand Wizard Sulla said in a low voice, "Alicia, regarding your choice of investment target this time, I can only say you truly hit the jackpot."

He looked at that family wizard and said, "No need to hide this news. Spread this news throughout the entire Land of Six Towers. Let those wizards with ulterior motives know that the wizard sponsored by Alicia has won the Cloud Marsh Cup championship."

"We even need to convene a family meeting to inform those people of these matters."

Grand Wizard Sulla said, "We need to hold a separate commendation meeting for Locke, and this meeting will also become the first Land of Six Towers family wizard meeting you'll preside over, Alicia."

"Besides this, we have a whole bunch of things to do. There are still many intricacies regarding this Cloud Marsh Cup championship..."

After Grand Wizard Sulla's soul finished giving instructions and that family wizard left the office, Grand Wizard Sulla looked at Alicia, who was immersed in joyful emotions, and hesitated to speak.

Grand Wizard Sulla said, "Alicia, there's something I don't know whether I should tell you."

Alicia said, "Grandfather, please speak."

Grand Wizard Sulla said, "Past Cloud Marsh Cup champions, as long as they don't fall and don't seriously go down the wrong path, can all become Second Circle wizards."

"Alicia, you cannot keep Locke, because our entire Land of Six Towers cannot keep Locke."

Hearing this, the joy on Alicia's face instantly disappeared. Her face paled. She raised her head and saw Grand Wizard Sulla looking at her with pitying eyes and slightly shaking his head.

Alicia gritted her teeth. "Grandfather, you said that our Scorpion Woman bloodline has a direct path to Second Circle wizard..."

Grand Wizard Sulla's face showed a smile. "Alicia, you've finally come around. As long as you're willing to wholeheartedly pursue the Bloodline School, with your talent, you will also shine greatly in the Bloodline School."

"It's not that you lack talent in the Bloodline School of the Conjuration School. You just lack interest."

Alicia looked at Grand Wizard Sulla indifferently. The expression on her face rapidly matured. Emotions would force a person to mature faster.

"Grandfather, interest is a form of talent."

Grand Wizard Sulla was stunned, then smiled. "That's true too."

"But interest can also be cultivated later."

"The Mage Plane only needs to retain one-third of the World Stone to maintain the plane's own stability and the normal operation of world power. In other words, after Uliel's teacher took away one-third of the World Stone from the Mage Plane, the remaining resources can only provide for one wizard to become a Second Circle wizard."

"But fortunately, Uliel's teacher took the World Stone by snatching it away, rather than taking it by polluting the World Stone with his own characteristics, so the World Stone itself hasn't been polluted."

"You can use the Mage Plane to become a Second Circle wizard, and your ultimate magic won't have any defects."

Grand Wizard Sulla's soul pointed a finger at Alicia's chest. Immediately, a scorpion crawled around on Alicia's chest. "This is the advanced meditation method of the Bloodline School naturally contained within your body."

"So I say you have great talent. You were born with the innate ability to advance to Second Circle wizard. You have extraordinary talents, and the various setbacks before advancing to Second Circle wizard, I view more as just a kind of test for you."