Spellcasting Gods

"Oh? Why not give it a try? I've been researching necromancy lately, and corpses are much more valuable than living people." Zhang Cheng shrugged nonchalantly.

"Are you sure?!" The vampire's tone revealed strong skepticism.

He was somewhat unsure whether human society's values ​​had changed drastically during the hundred years he had been asleep. By the standards of a hundred years ago, most spellcasters would not stand by and watch a young and beautiful girl die in front of them; men called it "gentlemanly conduct."

"Of course! I'm absolutely sure! Kill her! Hurry up! Otherwise, I'll do it myself!" Zhang Cheng urged without hesitation.

To increase credibility, he even raised his left hand and began to gather magic power. In the blink of an eye, a blazing fireball began to burn fiercely, ready to strike a target at any moment.

"Damn it! I've run into a madman!" the vampire cursed under his breath through gritted teeth.

Feeling the waves of heat in the air, his eerie blood-red pupils suddenly contracted. Without hesitation, he pushed the girl out of his arms and turned to run towards the intersection.

As a special species that relies on negative energy to sustain its life system, the things it fears most, besides the sun, are the terrifying high-temperature flames.

"Hahahaha! Sorry, Mr. Vampire, you don't expect to leave alive after seeing how I appeared, do you?" Zhang Cheng laughed as he flashed past the girl who was rushing towards him, then raised his flint staff and slammed it into the ground.

Snapped!

A dazzling white ice ring instantly spread outwards from him, freezing his opponent who hadn't run more than a few steps before he forcefully threw the fireball from his other hand.

boom!

Absolutely no surprises!

The enormous fireball struck the vampire squarely in the back, the immense force of the explosion sending him flying into the air before he crashed into a wooden telephone pole at the alley's exit.

Whether it was due to the pole's severe aging or its robust build, the pole snapped and slowly fell towards the alley entrance.

The vampire, still recovering from his severe injuries, had no time to react and was hit again. To make matters worse, the broken cable wrapped around one of his arms, immediately releasing a terrifying electric current.

Although the voltage in the United States is only 110V to 125V, which is far less powerful than 220V, it is still enough to cause considerable damage to the human body.

Less than half a minute later, the vampire's body began to tremble violently, and wisps of blue smoke rose from its head. It was obvious that it had been severely electrocuted.

At this moment, the low-voltage electricity not only failed to save his life, but also greatly prolonged his suffering and torment before death.

Out of curiosity about the vampire species, Zhang Cheng did not immediately eliminate his opponent. Instead, he observed with great interest the target's reaction when he was electrocuted and the speed at which his body carbonized.

After about five minutes, the vampire's body seemed to have reached its limit. With a bang, it turned into ashes like fine sand and disappeared completely from the world, leaving behind only a black heart as hard as stone and constantly radiating an evil aura.

This is the most important organ of a magical vampire. If a vampire noble obtains it, he can use a special ritual to resurrect a dead vampire and make him his servant.

Zhang Cheng naturally wouldn't let this heart fall into the hands of outsiders, so he avoided the cable that was still being discharged and took it for himself.

After doing all this, he turned to the girl who was curled up and trembling, and said, "Now, what should I do with you? You saw something you shouldn't have seen. Perhaps the only way to solve this problem once and for all is to kill you..."

Chapter 0257 Indifference

"No! Please don't kill me! I... I swear I didn't see anything, I didn't know anything! Waaah..."

Camilla, recovering from her shock, struggled to her feet, ignoring the blood on her forehead, and knelt on the ground, pleading desperately.

What happened in just a few minutes has far exceeded the comprehension of a girl from the slums.

The bizarre ways vampires die, and the mysterious spells like ice and fire that should only exist in fantasy, made her completely unable to believe what she was seeing, and she even thought she was hallucinating.

Unfortunately, the cold corpses of her two brothers on the ground constantly reminded her that it was all real.

Two completely different and fiercely conflicting thoughts almost drove her crazy. Now, facing the threat of death, it's a testament to her remarkable mental resilience that she hasn't completely broken down.

Zhang Cheng stroked his chin, staring with interest at the young girl who was crying her eyes out. After a while, he smiled and said, "Alright, stop pretending to be pitiful. I can spare your life, but in return, you have to do something for me."

"Wh...what is it?" Camilla instinctively clutched her chest, her expression showing extreme nervousness.

Although she wasn't quite sure what it was, her woman's keen intuition kept sending warnings.

“It’s very simple! I have something here that only women can use. You just need to do a small test, and I will not only spare your life, but also give you a generous reward, like this…” As he spoke, Zhang Cheng put his hand into his pocket and took out a white diamond that sparkled with dazzling brilliance.

Although this diamond has only undergone rough polishing, it is as big as an adult's thumbnail, and there is not a single impurity inside. Even an idiot could tell that its value is definitely no less than two or three hundred thousand US dollars, and that's the purchase price.

If it is polished with high precision and made into jewelry, it would not be surprising if it sold for millions or even tens of millions.

For a moment, Camilla's gaze was completely captivated by the diamond's brilliance. Several times she wanted to reach out and touch it, but for some reason she held back. Finally, without looking up, she asked, "Really? If I do as you say, I can get this diamond?"

“Of course! You can take it now. I’m a generous person and never mind paying in advance.” A playful glint flashed across Zhang Cheng’s face as he gently placed the diamond in the girl’s palm.

"My God..."

Feeling the texture of the gem against her skin, Camilla's breathing quickened. She understood the value of the diamond in her hand, and she knew that it could change her future and destiny.

Noticing the undisguised greed in the girl's eyes, Zhang Cheng knew the time was right. He took out the "Tears of the Deep Sea Queen" from the wooden box and handed it to her: "Here, take this, feel it with your heart, and then tell me what you feel."

"This is!!!!!"

Camilla, who had been carefully holding the diamond just a second ago, let it slip from her hands the next second, and tremblingly grabbed the "Tears of the Deep Sea Queen," as if she had fallen into a state of extreme frenzy.

She first kept stroking it, then started kissing and licking it, and finally even tried to swallow it whole.

She was completely unaware that Zhang Cheng, who had been standing next to her just seconds before, had silently retreated more than ten meters away, maintaining a relatively safe distance.

After about two or three minutes, the "Deep Sea Queen's Tears," which resembled blue pearls, suddenly released a dazzling light!

Strands of translucent silver threads tightly connected her to the girl. Before Camilla could figure out what was happening, her body began to age rapidly. Her once taut and smooth skin gradually loosened, and numerous wrinkles and age spots covered her entire body. Her once jet-black and lustrous hair turned gray and tattered.

In short, in the blink of an eye, Camilla went from looking like she was fifteen or sixteen years old to looking like she was seventy or eighty.

After this incredibly bizarre scene ended, she could no longer stand and collapsed to the ground with a thud, unable to get up on her own.

fear!

anger!

Powerless!

She felt as if she had just run an ultramarathon; every muscle and bone ached, and she didn't even have the strength to speak.

"Sigh, another failure. I knew finding a suitable target wouldn't be so easy."

Sighing in disappointment, Zhang Cheng bent down to pick up the "Tears of the Deep Sea Queen" that had fallen to the ground. He also handed the girl the diamond that had also fallen to the ground before turning and leaving the dimly lit alley.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Camilla tried to grab his clothes, but she was too slow and couldn't catch anything. She could only stare with desperate eyes and cry out, "Wait...wait! Help me! Please! Help me!"

"I'm sorry, miss, I haven't been able to figure out the specific principle behind that phenomenon either, so I can't help you. Besides, according to our agreement, you helped me complete the experiment, and I won't kill you and will pay you a diamond as a reward. Now we're even. As for the consequences of the experiment, you will naturally bear all the responsibility. After all, as an American, you should be very clear that a huge trap is often hidden behind a generous reward, right?"

After saying this, Zhang Cheng didn't linger any longer, crossed the road, and disappeared into the vast night.

In fact, he has conducted more than twenty experiments in order to figure out the specific effects of the "Tears of the Queen of the Deep Sea," none of which were successful.

Each test subject was either drained of their life energy or had their soul destroyed, turning them into a walking corpse.

This magical item, containing pure energy, seems to have extremely demanding requirements for its user; the slightest mistake could destroy the user.

Sometimes Zhang Cheng felt that he should just give this dangerous little gadget to Melroyas instead of going to all the trouble of studying something he couldn't use. But then he felt a little reluctant, wondering if it might contain some important knowledge or information.

As he walked toward the townhouse in Brooklyn, deep in thought, a silver-gray car suddenly pulled over and a familiar figure jumped out.

"My God! Sir! I've finally found you! You have no idea how much has happened in New York these days. Come on, get in the car, I'll take you home." Polman quickly opened the car door, a ecstatic smile spreading across his fat face.

Although Zhang Cheng wanted to figure out how this fat guy found him, he knew the roadside wasn't a place for chatting, so he silently climbed into the passenger seat, intending to wait until they were in a safe place to ask him properly.

Chapter 0258 Chaotic News

After navigating the dark, narrow, and dilapidated streets of the Bronx, the car soon entered the relatively bustling downtown area.

Those who have never been to New York City would probably never believe that the city is often more lively at night than during the day, with men and women indulging in revelry everywhere in front of various bars and nightclubs.

Some of them are elites from Wall Street, darlings of high society, who come to release the immense pressure accumulated from their work and life; others are from the lower rungs of society, who are willing to become playthings of the rich in order to earn money or find opportunities to change their own destiny.

Through the glass window, Zhang Cheng observed this world, both familiar and strange, with a scrutinizing gaze. After a long while, he finally asked, "How did you find my whereabouts?"

"Of course, we asked the prophetic witch Ancia to do a little divination. You know, she's the most famous prophet in all of New York, no, in all of North America, and so far her divination results have an accuracy rate of sixty percent," Polman gave the answer with great interest.

Clearly, Zhang Cheng's return was fantastic news for him, meaning that the previously planned scheme could continue and he could finally shed the awkward identity of a "cleaner."

"Sixty percent accuracy? That's quite an impressive record. You must have paid a hefty price to have her do your divination." Zhang Cheng's face showed interest.

The reason is simple: magic such as divination and prophecy has always been known for its uncertainty. This is why, despite the many terrible disasters predicted in many magical worlds, neither the rulers nor the ordinary people seem to care much.

In fact, in most magical worlds, countless people try to predict and peek into the future every day, but in the end, only a few people can find one or two vague fragments in the river of time, and then draw up what will happen months, years, decades, or even hundreds or thousands of years later based on their own guesses and imagination.

As for the rest, it's simply a matter of confusing dreams with reality...

With so many false prophecies, any ruler would easily believe the results of a so-called prophet unless he repeatedly proves how accurate his prophecies are.

While a 60% success rate might be considered barely passing in other fields, in the field of prediction, it is already at a master level.

Zhang Cheng had long heard that Ancia was a witch whose influence rivaled that of Catherine, but he was surprised to learn today that she possessed such accurate prophetic abilities. Given that everyone inevitably encounters problems such as finding people or things, her importance is self-evident. Perhaps many important figures in the council will need her, and her status will naturally rise accordingly.

The only thing that worried Zhang Cheng was whether this prophetic witch could actually foresee his true origins and those incredible experiences.

If possible, should he try to eliminate it as soon as possible, or find an opportunity to have an open and honest talk and see if a mutually beneficial alliance can be reached?

Polman, unaware that his master, to whom he had sworn allegiance, was considering a very serious matter, smiled and shook his head: "No, Your Excellency, Ancia has not made any unreasonable demands. She merely hopes that you can find some time to meet with her. She seems quite interested in some of the potions you have concocted."

"Oh? What kind of potion?" A subtle, almost imperceptible glint flashed in Zhang Cheng's eyes.

"It's a potion of wisdom! To be precise, all the spellcasters in the New York underworld know that you can use alchemy to create a potion that can make the mind clearer and the thinking more agile. Even Congressman Miles, who is about to die, sent someone to invite you to discuss the mysteries of alchemy before he dies."

As he said this, Polman's face was filled with excitement and anticipation. No one knew better than him the huge sensation that the smart drug would cause once it hit the market.

As long as this potion can be continuously produced, it is equivalent to gaining the friendship of thousands of spellcasters.

As an operator and manager, he could not only gain unimaginable benefits, but also change his own status from a lowly "cleaner" to a lord's servant and steward.

Don't underestimate this point!

It's important to understand that in the strict hierarchy of the underworld, "cleaners" are the lowest-ranking peripheral personnel, who are on call at any time and are responsible for cleaning up other people's messes. No matter how respected they are or how much wealth they have in modern society, they can only obediently follow orders.

The lord's stewards and servants were essentially senior managers, assisting in managing various affairs within the territory and advising their lord. Anyone wishing to harm them would have to obtain the lord's permission first; otherwise, it would be considered a provocation and could potentially escalate into war between territories.

"A smart potion, huh..." Zhang Cheng stroked his chin thoughtfully.

He never expected that of all the low-level magic potions he had made, the most popular would be the unassuming Potion of Wisdom.

After all, this potion only requires one part Demon King Grass and two parts Heather, and its effect is merely a slight improvement in memory and mental agility for about an hour, far less significant than the effects of Arcane Wisdom. Aside from trying it once when the first bottle was prepared, I lost interest in it.

To Zhang Cheng's utter surprise, this thing that he considered useless actually caused a huge stir in the underworld.

If we could concoct a more advanced and potent intelligence potion, wouldn't we be able to use it as a bargaining chip to directly exchange something useful with the high-ranking members of parliament?

Thinking of this, a playful smile appeared on his face, and he said, "You seemed to have mentioned earlier that a lot happened when I left. Let me tell you about it now while we have time, and hopefully there won't be any major trouble."

"Hehe! No big trouble, but plenty of small trouble. For example, your fish bait seems to be being pursued relentlessly by some unknown guy lately. It looks like it won't be long before it succumbs. You'd better be careful," Polman hinted without turning his head.