Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 471 Traveling with Little Fairies

After eating and drinking her fill, with her grand-disciple serving her, and then having a good night's sleep, Celia was completely refreshed.

Early in the morning, she followed Frilian with a smile, watching her grand-apprentice practice magic and giving her earnest guidance.

Celia truly lives up to her reputation as a great mage; her insightful and precise judgment, coupled with her far-sighted guidance, has greatly benefited Frilian.

On her way back, Celia remarked, "Frilian, as an elf, you are the most diligent mage I know."

Frillie rolled her eyes adorably: "Are you implying, Master, that I'm not the most diligent among your disciples?"

Celia nodded: "Of course not."

She counted on her fingers, "Deryl Roberts, Herri Jokic, and King Mendes, my three new disciples, are all more diligent than you."

"Their diligence seems to me like self-torture."

Frilian was silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke up: "Mr. Shazo said: We elves have our own rhythm. We shouldn't compete with humans in terms of diligence and ferocity. We should focus on accumulation and prolong the competition."

"Oh dear, you've been influenced by that guy so quickly," Celia said, feigning surprise. "Little Freya, in 100 years, you won't become a swordsman, will you?"

Frillie shook her head and said, "Of course not, I'm a magician."

Seria chuckled and asked again, "So, will you learn any druidic magic from that guy?"

Frillie nodded, then shook her head: "I really want to learn druidic magic, but Mr. Shazo won't allow me to."

Seria suddenly got angry again: "That damn Shazo, he really did show you his druidic magic!"

"He's subtly seducing you, making you feel itchy inside, until finally you take the initiative to ask him for guidance."

"That guy's druid spells are far from successful; he's just trying to trick people into helping him research druid spells!"

"Little Frillie, remember this: don't fall for it, or you'll just be wasting your time!"

Frillie: "Oh, oh, I'll listen to my master!" (Serious.jpg)

After returning home, Celia and Shazo naturally had another argument.

It wasn't until Xia Zuo stuffed Celia's mouth with eight-treasure porridge that she finally ate her breakfast in peace.

"Delicious," Celia praised, then glanced sideways at Xia Zuo and asked, "The porridge is really good, why are the other dishes so awful?"

Xia Zuo said helplessly, "What can I do? The salt is of such poor quality, and there are no spices like soy sauce, vinegar, star anise, or fennel. How am I supposed to make something delicious?"

Moreover, there wasn't even suitable oil available; they could only steam or boil food, and it was a miracle if it was even edible.

"Excuses! You've been using the same excuse for a thousand years, and I've never seen you try to find or prepare anything. All you do is lie around sunbathing all day."

After a lively breakfast, Frilian continued studying magic, while Celia and Shazo began their formal conversation.

Celia asked again, confirming, "Shazo, are you really leaving here?"

Xia Zuo nodded: "We all know that once a demon is born in a place, it will not be born again for at least 200 years. There is no point in me staying here."

"I must go and find the next place most likely to give birth to demons, and continue to pursue the secret of the demon race's birth."

Seria shook her head and said, "Shazo, with the defeat of the elves, all the elders who opposed us are aging rapidly. They should all return to nature in a few hundred years. You don't need to prove yourself right to them anymore."

Xia Zuo said, "I'm not trying to prove anything to those dying elders, but rather to trace the origins of the demon race and find a way to completely resolve the disaster caused by the Demon King's army."

"When we first met, the Demon King's army would only erupt once every 200 years, but now it's less than 80 years. This trend is unsettling."

Celia said, "Your proposed 'Infiltration and Human Enhancement Project' should—"

Xia Zuo shook his head and said, "This plan is enough for you alone. The two of us working together will maximize our chances of success."

Celia sighed again, "It's always like this. Every time I argue with you, I can't convince you in the end."

"How can I contact you in the future?"

Xia Zuo raised his hand: "The magical mark you left me is still there. If you need anything, just activate the mark and I will come to you."

"You're a big celebrity in human society now, it's very easy for me to find you."

Seria nodded helplessly and accepted Shazo's solution.

After a moment of silence, she asked, "Tell me about the birth of the demon race."

Xia Zuo nodded and recounted in detail the entire process from discovering the aura of the demons to finding the labyrinth where the demons were born, until confirming the transformation of the demons into pupae, and the birth and killing of the demons.

He also took out a piece of parchment and showed Celie what the pupae looked like, as well as the style of the altar they worshipped and every detail of the patterns on the altar.

Finally, Xia Zuo concluded: "It can now be confirmed that the demons did not sneak in through space-time rifts, nor through eggs."

It's not that they are born from the womb, but rather that a mysterious force infiltrates them, causing ordinary animals and plants to pupate and transform into monstrous pupae.

"Then these pupae of demons gather together, construct hidden underground labyrinths, build living altars, continue to receive mysterious power from their source, and eventually transform into the demons and monsters we are familiar with."

Celia asked, "How long will this process take?"

Xia Zuo replied, "Judging from the traces at the scene, it will take 10 to 12 days, which is quite fast."

Celia continued, "Is it possible to detect it in advance and nip it in the bud?"

Xia Zuo laughed and said, "Of course you can, I've already done it."

"However, there aren't many people with our keen senses, and it's impossible for them to live in the wilderness for an extended period, so it's not possible to repeat this for the time being."

Celia sighed. "Well, that was just unrealistic wishful thinking on my part."

Xia Zuo smiled and encouraged him, "This is already quite a harvest. If you keep going, you'll achieve it someday."

"Oh, right," he continued, "Frilian and I went together to observe the birth of the demon race."

"This little sprite used a spell called [Golden Lightning of Demon Slayer], killing two newly born demons in one strike. It's an amazing spell."

Celia paused for a moment, then frowned and said, "I know the spell 'Golden Lightning of Exorcism,' and I know how it harms demons."

It's indeed very powerful, but its preparation time is too long, making it impractical in actual combat.

"For this magic to work, we need a powerful warrior like you to stand in front of us, and we also need to weaken the enemy's evasion speed and defensive magic. Only then can we achieve a one-hit kill."

Xia Zuo grinned smugly and said, "Hehehe, this time you're the one who made a mistake."

"Seria, didn't you notice that this magic's 'anti-magic' attribute against demons exists independently?"

Seria jumped to her feet, her entire body frozen in place as if struck by lightning.

Her mind was in complete chaos. The word "breaking the demon" shattered all her thoughts, and she just felt an intense itch on her head.

Something is about to grow out.

Hasn't Flamel said something similar?

As the developers of [Golden Thunder of Exorcism], Flame and Frilian both reported it, but it was ignored by Celie.

Simply put, Celie's extensive combat experience created a bias, leading her to prioritize the spell's advantages and disadvantages in actual combat when judging an offensive spell.

The advantages of [Golden Lightning of Exorcism] are obvious, but its flaws are even more obvious, and there are many of them that are fatal, so naturally it is not accepted by Celie.

Just as Celia disliked the elven elders who rejected Shazo and her proposal for salvation, she herself easily rejected [Golden Thunder of Demon Slayer].

Because of Celia's authority in magic, Flame accepted her teacher's conclusion, deeming the spell a failed spell, and put it out of her mind.

If it weren't for Frilian's lingering attachment to the first spell she developed, Shazo probably wouldn't have seen a similar spell developed for a very long time.

When Xia Zuo said the same thing, it was a huge shock to Celie.

After all, the two had known each other for over a thousand years, and in Celie's heart, Xia Zuo held almost limitless trust.

No matter how outrageous or illogical his words were, she would think about them carefully and repeatedly, and would not dismiss them based on her existing experience.

When Xia Zuo helped Celie break through the barrier of perception, she understood the value of "anti-magic attribute" almost instantly. It was a huge strategic value for intelligent races all over the world in their war against the demons, and it could not be overstated no matter how much it was praised.

Seria's mind was filled with flashes of inspiration, and countless ideas surged forth like a spring, giving rise to numerous magical concepts in the blink of an eye.

Suddenly, Celia sighed again, "Why wasn't Flame an elf? She died of old age at only 63. It's such a pity."

"By the way, what will happen to Frillie if you leave?"

Xia Zuo replied matter-of-factly, "Frilian is traveling with me, of course. What, would she be learning magic from you?"

Celia shook her head without hesitation and said, "I haven't settled down yet, so of course I can't take her over."

Then she muttered to herself, "But I'm worried that you'll ruin such a magical genius, and I'm even more afraid that you'll turn her into a druid—"

Xia Zuo bluntly made his request: "If you can't do it yourself, then stop talking nonsense and hurry up and prepare two magic briefcases."

"To enchant with top-tier spatial magic, it must be able to contain Frillian's library and my armory."

Celia's eyes widened: "These magical items are very expensive, and I can't even gather all the materials."

Xia Zuo pointed to a door in the room and said, "I don't have any money, but you can take any materials you like—"

"make a deal!"

"No taking it back!!"

A few months later, when autumn had completely passed, Xia Zuo received two suitcases personally delivered by Celie, whose warehouse had long been packed up and emptied by Celie.

The box given to Frilian was small and cute, but its interior space was enormous. It could not only hold all the books in her library, but also a magic laboratory given to her by Celie, including a large amount of experimental materials, alchemy materials, and a complete set of alchemy equipment.

The briefcase given to Xia Zuo was completely empty; its interior space could only hold the various swords he had collected and forged, plus two sets of clothes, and it was already full.

Xia Zuo gritted his teeth and laughed, "No wonder you emptied my warehouse first, and used magical puppets to deliver the goods—"

"That Celie is deliberately making things difficult for me, Gian."

"Just you wait, you poor little elf. Next time we meet, I'll tickle you until you cry!"

Frillie wore a thick coat, carried a wand on her back, and held a briefcase in both hands, exhaling white breath.

She took one last look at the courtyard where she had lived for a year, then walked out without lingering and closed the gate.

Just then, the sound of a door closing and locking came from the side.

Frillie looked at the tall elf and asked, "Mr. Shazo, where are we going?"

Xia Zuo looked at the sky covered with dark clouds and replied, "The weather is getting colder, so let's go south first to look for places where demons might be born, and visit my old friends along the way."

Frillie asked curiously, "Mr. Shazo's old friend, is he also an elf?"

Xia Zuo shook his head and said, "No, it's a dragon, a blue dragon from the southern desert, the kind that breathes lightning."

"Ah? You have dragon friends?" The elven girl was taken aback, finding it hard to believe.

Xia Zuo proudly boasted, "Of course, we have a great relationship. It gave me its scales, teeth, and horns back then."

Frilian: "————"

Xia Zuo: "What's wrong with you?"

Frillie asked irritably, "Mr. Shazo, are you sure the blue dragon gave it to you willingly, and didn't you forcibly take it from me?"

Xia Zuo looked up and chuckled, "Haha, these details are not important at all, not important at all—"

"Anyway, it gave me the things."

"Two hundred years have passed, that guy should be fully grown by now—"

Frillie covered her eyes and said with a wry smile, "I knew it, you forcibly took it from me."

"Haha, this desert trip is going to be very exciting."

"Um?"

Frillie felt a chill on her face. Looking up, she saw countless white snowflakes falling.

"It's snowing—it's so beautiful!"

"But, it's not good to set off now, Mr. Xia Zuo."

Xia Zuo looked up at the sky and smiled nonchalantly: "How could it be difficult to set off?"

"The day I choose must be the best day to travel."

As Xia Zuo spoke, he opened the box and pulled out a giant sword that had no blade and looked like an iron rod.

Xia Zuo held his sword in both hands, looked up at the sky, turned to face south, and his aura suddenly exploded, forming a terrifying flame that instantly evaporated the snowflakes in mid-air.

After gathering his strength, Xia Zuo raised his greatsword and slashed towards the southern sky.

"Open it!!"