Wizard Earl

"This Frostfire Staff was a third-tier enchanted item that Lord Cameron specially commissioned an alchemist to create, taking into account his own cultivation characteristics. It was a perfect match for his meditation method. As Lord Cameron's student, Elena's cultivation method was also inherited from Lord Cameron."

"Therefore, this Frostfire Staff is also very suitable for Elena, and will greatly enhance her strength. I predict that now, with the help of the Frostfire Staff, although Elena is still no match for Hummels, her strength is no longer inferior to those of the Punishers in the Church!" Margaret said meaningfully to Connor.

After carefully considering Margaret's words, Connor was truly confused, unsure of what Margaret meant.

"Margaret, do you know why Elena wants to see me?" Connor, still unable to figure it out, gave up trying and asked Margaret directly.

Upon hearing Connor's question, Margaret sighed softly, then carefully chose her words before speaking: "Connor, you're now embroiled in the power struggle within the Church of Storms..."

"What do you mean, Margaret? What does Elena's breakthrough to become a second-level wizard have to do with me?" Connor asked, puzzled. Margaret's words were truly cryptic, making him even more confused.

"Connor, don't be impatient, let me explain slowly. Before Elena broke through to become a Level Two Wizard, among the candidates for the next Pope of the Storm Church, only Cardinal Hummels had reached the Level Two Wizard realm. Therefore, Cardinal Hummels had absolute suppression over the other candidates. This created Hummels' immense power within the Storm Church, surpassing all other cardinals and making him almost second only to Pope Ilsanker!"

"However, Hummels is a very assertive person within the Storm Church. He is not only tough on external forces, but also extremely tough on internal factional conflicts within the Storm Church, showing no willingness to compromise. He has infringed upon the interests of many people both inside and outside the Storm Church. Therefore, although Hummels has many supporters within the church, he also has quite a few opponents!"

"The reason why many of these people who dislike Hummels remain silent and do not express their dissatisfaction with him is entirely because everyone believes that Hummels is likely to become the next pope, so no one wants to offend him too much."

"Elena was originally a cardinal, second only to the Pope, alongside Hummels. She held a high position in the Church and was known as a genius in cultivation from a young age. She broke many records in the Church for cultivation speed and was highly regarded by many elders of the Church. She was widely regarded in the Church as one of the most promising candidates to succeed His Holiness Ilsank as the next Pope, besides Hummels."

Now that Elena has broken through to become a Level Two Wizard, Hummels' absolute advantage in cultivation over other Storm Church pope candidates has been broken. In other words, Hummels' chances of becoming the next Storm Church pope are not as certain as before. If Hummels' probability of becoming the next pope was previously 90%, now it should only be 70%!

"Don't underestimate the fact that it's only a 20% reduction. It's enough to make those within the Church whose interests have been infringed upon by Hummels start to stir. As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. These people who are dissatisfied with Hummels are Elena's natural supporters in the race to become the next pope."

"Before she became a Level Two Wizard, Elena appeared indifferent to worldly affairs and showed little interest in church power or becoming the next Pope. However, I knew very well that Elena was a very ambitious person when it came to power. She wanted to become the first female Pope in the history of the Storm Church!"

The reason Elena had previously appeared indifferent to power and the prospect of becoming pope was entirely due to her composure; she knew she couldn't oppose Hummels at the time, so she chose to protect herself.

Elena's strategy was quite successful. Hummels was actually lulled into a false sense of security by her performance. Although he was always wary of Elena, he didn't really target her. You know, Hummels never hesitated to deal with the other papal candidates who could threaten his position. They were either killed or injured, and basically none of them had a good ending... At this point, Margaret shook her head, her expression somewhat wistful.

After carefully listening to Margaret's account of the Storm Church's internal secrets, Connor gained some understanding of the fierce power struggle within the Storm Church surrounding the "next pope," but he still couldn't quite grasp the direct connection between Elena's desire to see him and the internal strife within the Storm Church, and his expression remained somewhat puzzled.

After expressing her feelings, Margaret, seeing Connor's expression, organized her thoughts and continued to explain, "Elena wasn't strong enough before, so she chose to suppress her ambitions to lull Hummels into a false sense of security. Now that Elena has broken through to become a level two wizard, and with the help of the Frostfire Staff, although she is still not strong enough to rival Hummels, she has become a significant threat to him."

"Her increased strength has made Elena extremely confident. She has decided to no longer hide her ambitions and to compete head-on with Hummels for the next pope. Now that the Storm Church has reached a consensus to deal with Reyes, if Elena were to eliminate Reyes, her prestige within the church would undoubtedly soar, greatly increasing her leverage in the competition with Hummels for the next pope!"

"That's why Elena wanted to meet with you, Reyes's student, to see if she could gain any advantage!" After explaining Elena's motives in detail, Margaret finally revealed Elena's purpose in wanting to meet with Connor.

After hearing Margaret's explanation, Connor finally understood and his doubts were resolved. He shook his head helplessly. Since beginning his training, becoming a wizard, and stepping into the wizarding world, Connor Ferguson had gained many benefits from his mentor, Reyes, but had also encountered countless dangers and troubles. He didn't know whether becoming Reyes's student was Connor's fortune or misfortune...