Big Capitalist

Just as Ed was about to ask further questions, a terrifying pressure suddenly spread around them like a dark cloud.

Then, the power of the domain emerged, and Ed felt as if the magic power in his body was tightly grasped by an invisible hand, and it stagnated instantly. His body seemed to be stuck in a quagmire and became extremely heavy. What is this power?

Ed's thoughts were instantly drawn back to the classroom at the Arcane Academy. That was a course specially arranged by President Merlin that all students must study. It concerned their survival in this crisis-ridden world - relevant knowledge about the followers of the evil cult Ancient Gods.

In the spacious and bright classroom, sunlight shines through the colored glass windows, casting mottled light and shadows.

President Merlin stood tall on the podium, his eyes were as sharp as torches, scanning the pairs of curious and thirsty eyes below the stage, and he said solemnly: "Students, the Ancient God Cult is the most dangerous cult hidden in the Aize Continent. Understanding them is the key to protecting yourself and your homeland."

Merlin waved his hand and a huge image as complex as the veins of stars appeared on the blackboard behind him. It was the hierarchical structure diagram of the Ancient God Cult.

"First of all, the believers in the Ancient God Cult are clearly divided into different levels, from low to high, with a huge difference in strength. The ordinary believers at the bottom are mostly deceived people. They are not very strong themselves. They may only have some strange tricks that ordinary people have, such as being able to control some low-level dark creatures, such as rotten rats and evil insects, to cause trouble and spread fear."

The images kept changing as Merlin explained, and the screen focused on a group of strange people in black robes. "When they reach the third level, they begin to master some basic magic, and can release poison mist and curses. Although the power of a single one is not amazing, when they are in a group, they should not be underestimated."

The scene changed again, and several more mysterious and eerie figures appeared. "At the level of deacons, they are the backbone of the Ancient God Cult. Not only do they have profound magic power and can cast forbidden magic fields that give low-level magicians a headache, they also possess some extremely terrifying skills. Among them, the most difficult is the invisible 'Wriggling Mouth' hidden in the void. These strange creatures seem to come from another dimension and can devour people's magic power, flesh and blood, and even souls silently, making it difficult to defend against them."

Merlin's voice grew deeper and deeper, and the atmosphere in the classroom grew solemn.

"Once they become elders, they are at the top of the Ancient God Cult. Their magic fluctuations are like surging tides, usually reaching the sixth level or even higher. They can often use the power of the Ancient Gods to perform some forbidden evil spells. Our Arcane Academy does not have much information about beings of this level."

"Students, here comes the key point. Ancient God followers do not have to reach level five to use the Forbidden Magic Field. No matter which level they belong to, Ancient God followers will master an extremely difficult ability - Forbidden Magic. It's just that level five can fully cast the Forbidden Magic Field to cover the magician. Our magic power will be greatly suppressed, or even completely stagnant," Merlin looked at the students below the stage with a burning gaze, making sure that everyone understood this key point.

Then, Merlin explained in detail a series of targeted countermeasures: "When facing ordinary Ancient God believers, teamwork is the most important. Magicians are responsible for long-range output, using powerful magic attacks to disrupt their formation; warriors must fight in close combat, relying on their agility and tenacity to create a safe output environment for magicians. When encountering deacons and higher-level enemies, if there is a huge gap in strength, do not fight hard. Remember, running away is not shameful, and only by staying alive can you have a chance to fight back."

Merlin took a few steps forward, picked up a piece of chalk, and quickly drew several escape routes on the blackboard. "If you are in an open area, you must disperse and use the terrain to your advantage to run in different directions, making it difficult for the enemy to concentrate their forces to pursue you. If you are in a narrow alley, such as the streets and alleys of our Arcane City, you must use walls, houses and other obstacles, perform some flexible body movements, and quickly get out of the enemy's sight."

He also stressed the importance of intelligence sharing: "Everyone must remember that intelligence is our weapon. Don't learn from those stupid people who know the enemy's strength but hide it for all kinds of ridiculous reasons, or say they are not qualified. In my eyes, these are all bullshit. Only by mastering enough intelligence can we survive when encountering the Ancient God Cult members, increase our chances of winning during the battle, and know how to escape cleverly."

Not only that, Merlin also used the Arcane Journal as a platform to simply publicize the basic abilities of the Ancient God's followers to the public, so that the people could be prepared and not panic when danger came.

Recalling this, Ed came back to his senses instantly, thinking to himself: The person I am facing now must be a follower of the Ancient God Cult who controls the domain.

The forbidden magic field was like an invisible black net that suddenly enveloped Ed and the others. The moment Ed's body stiffened, the magic power in his body seemed to be frozen and he could not move. However, he did not panic. Relying on the skills and courage he had acquired through hard training in the Arcane Academy, he quickly concentrated and tried to open the simple field.

After the simple field was opened, Ed felt a warm current rising from his heart, slowly flowing to his limbs and bones, and the magic power began to flow again.

There was a flash of surprise in his eyes, and he breathed a sigh of relief, secretly rejoicing: Fortunately, the opponent should be at the fifth-level deacon. If he was stronger, with their current strength, they would not have time to use the simple domain, and would be completely suppressed by the opponent's domain, becoming lambs to be slaughtered.

Just when everyone was still in shock, a burst of strange laughter came from the top of the high wall. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a deacon of the Ancient God Cult appear like a ghost.

He was wearing a tattered black robe with strange purple-black runes embroidered on it, like a wriggling evil insect, emitting a disgusting smell. His face was thin and pale, and in his deep eye sockets, a pair of blood-red eyes flashed with madness and greed. When he saw Ed and the others, his mouth opened, revealing a mouthful of black and yellow, uneven teeth. That evil and cruel smile was creepy.

"I'm so lucky!" He yelled madly, his voice sharp and piercing, like the cry of a night owl, "I can't believe I've met so many delicious souls. The Lord of Plague will surely like them." As he spoke, he stretched out his hands, which were as slender as dead branches, and danced them wildly in the air, as if he was already seeking credit from the Lord of Plague.