Spellcasting Gods

Since discovering that spreading shadow energy could multiply her strength, she has gradually transformed from a demon who tempts souls to fall into depravity into a missionary, wanting to inject shadow energy into whatever she encounters.

In fact, recently, this cunning succubus, in league with the fallen angel Samir, successfully attacked several low-ranking angels hiding among ordinary people, forcibly corrupting their cores.

It's estimated that it won't be long before there's a squad entirely composed of fallen shadow angels.

"Oh? You think they have potential?" Zhang Cheng raised his eyebrows in surprise.

After all, neither shadow nor fel energy is magical energy in the ordinary sense.

Especially those originating from distorted spacetime, once a life form can no longer bear or control them, they will be instantly devoured by shadow energy, leaving not even a trace behind.

Having long since disregarded human life, he had made many attempts long ago and discovered that even among the inhabitants of the underworld, few could become users of shadow energy.

On the contrary, angels who are exceptionally sensitive to energy, once their cores are infused with shadow, can all become outstanding shadow sorcerers.

However, there are far fewer angels on Earth. If another race could completely replace them, then it wouldn't be long before another Burning Legion would be resurrected in this world.

“Of course! I’m absolutely certain! These adorable little creatures possess an innate evil curse flowing within them, making them the perfect vessel for shadow energy. Of course, I’m not suggesting you spare them, but rather that you capture some from elsewhere to build a shadow spellcaster army for you.” The succubus suggested, swaying her alluring figure.

Undoubtedly, she wanted to use this opportunity to gain the rights and power she had long desired.

Zhang Cheng stroked his chin and pondered for a moment, then quickly nodded slightly: "Okay! I'll give you half a month to wipe out all the vampire families in New York State. Tell them it's either obedience or death; there's no third way."

"Hahahaha! As you wish, my dear master. I assure you, you will soon possess a sorcerer army powerful enough to destroy your enemies." Renes's eyes gleamed with excitement and anticipation as his wish was fulfilled.

“I hope so! Alright, take all these vampire prisoners away and burn them all in the sunlight tomorrow morning. Now, let’s deal with the living.” As he spoke, Zhang Cheng turned his gaze to Brenda, who remained standing motionless.

The latter clenched his fists tightly, his face filled with hatred as he retorted, "You demon in human skin! You'll get your comeuppance sooner or later!"

"Retribution? Wow! I didn't even know you believed in that! You know what? So-called retribution is just an excuse for the weak to comfort and hypnotize themselves. Only in this way can they numb themselves and struggle to keep living, instead of mustering the courage to fight their enemies to the death. Unfortunately, you are now a complete weakling. Even more unfortunately, you will watch your parents, wife, children, and lover die under your own vicious magic..."

As he uttered the last word, Zhang Cheng raised his hand and pointed in the direction of Brenda's family.

In less than half a minute, the blood vessels in these people's bodies began to burst wildly, and scarlet blood gushed out like a fountain. Finally, they collapsed into pools of blood with a thud.

As a powerful mage, he easily deciphered the spell's structure, modified it, and then cast it.

"Ah ...

Watching her youngest son convulse and die, Brenda finally lost control of her emotions, rushing forward like a madwoman, tears of bright red blood streaming from her eyes.

But before he could get close, Doomguard Pollak stepped forward and swung his fist, the size of a sandbag, to knock him down and pin him to the ground.

Sensing the enemy's frenzied agony, Zhang Cheng's face showed satisfaction: "See? This is what happens when you try to provoke me! Jesse, weren't you just trying to create a powerful undead? This guy is yours now. Just a reminder, the power of an undead is built on intense negative emotions. The more painful and desperate a soul is, the more likely it is to become what you want after death."

"I understand, Boss."

Jesse Livermore approached in her ten-centimeter heels, bent down, and winked playfully at Brenda, saying, "Dear Congressman, I hope you won't resent me, because you're about to experience the most extreme pain, pain so intense that you'll find death to be an incredibly beautiful and luxurious release..."

Chapter 587 Longevity Potion (Part 1)

Fear is a power!

An extremely powerful force!

In fact, throughout human development, whether it is the ancient tribal system, slavery, feudalism, or authoritarianism, or the democracy and universal suffrage that are being promoted now, the most basic order and ruling structure are essentially built on fear.

The only difference is that some fears stem from life's instinctive aversion to pain and death, while others are more complex, first establishing a legal system that benefits the ruling class, and then using punishment to instill awe of the law in the people, thereby ultimately achieving the goal of protecting their own interests.

But no matter what, fear is the root of all this, a nightmare rooted deep in everyone's subconscious.

Interestingly, creating fear requires striking a balance. If it's too little, it can lead to a strong desire for revenge; if it's too much, it can arouse a strong will to survive, triggering large-scale resistance and riots.

As a psychic with the ability to read other people's memories and deep thoughts at will, Zhang Cheng undoubtedly knows very well how to control the degree to which others feel fear towards him.

In just about two weeks, the entire state of New York experienced its first power reshuffle.

Anyone unlucky enough to have anything to do with vampires or Brenda became a target for purging.

More than 700 people were executed!

Eight hundred vampires were also publicly subjected to sun exposure!

After this round of brutal crackdown, vampire activity in New York State has basically disappeared completely, almost to the point of putting up a sign in public that reads: "Vampires and scum with vampire blood are not allowed to enter, or they will be executed."

No one knew that there were more than 450 people willing to abandon everything, embrace the shadows with their bodies and souls, and completely submit to the succubus Renes, becoming the world's first shadow sorcerers.

Of course, this bloody massacre targeting an entire race still caused quite a stir in the underworld.

Vampire families in other parts of North America, in particular, have expressed their deep concern to the council, fearing that they too may be innocently implicated.

In order to quell the growing panic in the underworld, Cosmo had no choice but to use his power as Speaker to call an emergency meeting of all members of parliament.

As thirteen candles were lit one by one, the thirteen members of the North American Supreme Council gathered once again and sat in their respective seats.

This time, however, Zhang Cheng was not the one being summoned and questioned, but rather became one of them.

He glanced at the amused or indifferent looks from his "colleagues" around him and understood what the topic was. He laughed and said self-deprecatingly, "Looks like I've gone a bit too far lately, haven't I?"

"Hahahaha! Don't take it too seriously! It's just some vampires complaining! When did these vermin become qualified to influence the decisions made by the Supreme Council? Besides, some of them even dared to assassinate a high-ranking councilor. If you just nod your head, I'll wipe out all the vampires in my jurisdiction."

A male councilor with short, silver-gray hair laughed and patted Zhang Cheng on the shoulder.

Clearly, in his eyes, even if all the vampires in the world were tied together, they couldn't compare to the friendship of a master alchemist.

Moreover, this alchemy master also brought dragon eggs and valuable knowledge about raising young dragons.

As for vampires, they are nothing but a group of lowly, dark creatures. If their lowly lives could bring them enough profit, they would soon be killed and become a rare species.

“That’s right! A mere vampire is nothing compared to your immense value,” another female councilor chimed in with a smile.

Seeing that the meeting hadn't even started yet, the councilors began to collectively side with Zhang Cheng. Finally, the speaker couldn't help but cough twice to remind them: "Ahem! Gentlemen! Watch your words! Vampires are also part of the underworld. You can't treat them like the black slaves who were trafficked to America more than two hundred years ago."

"Black slaves? Excuse me, Your Excellency, in my eyes they are not even as good as black slaves. At least black slaves can be sold for a decent price, can't they?" Lavern curled his lip in disdain.

"Enough! I called you all here today to solve problems, not to let panic spread further." Cosmo tapped the table in exasperation.

“Don’t worry, Speaker, I have already completed the retaliatory operation and have no intention of doing anything to the remaining vampires,” Zhang Cheng stated directly.

He's not an idiot; he knows when to stop. Expanding the area of ​​attack would only attract more enemies and wouldn't have any deterrent effect whatsoever.

"Oh? You're willing to stop!" The speaker raised his eyebrows in surprise.

In his memory, Zhang Cheng had always been a vindictive and even somewhat crazy and extreme young man, so he found it hard to believe that this matter was just left like that.

After all, attempting to kill a member of the Supreme Council is no small crime, and any fierce retaliation would be entirely justified.

Zhang Cheng smiled and shrugged: "Of course! I've gotten what I wanted, which is awe and fear. I believe no one will dare to question my status, ability, or methods anymore."

"Okay, I understand." Cosmo nodded slightly after getting the answer he wanted.

However, after pondering for a moment, he suddenly asked, "Dear Zhang, I wonder if you have the ability to make longevity potions?"

"Longevity potion? Why are you asking about this? Could it be..." A strange light flashed in Zhang Cheng's eyes.

“I am already 140 years old and have used magic multiple times to forcibly postpone my physical death. If you can concoct a potion that can extend my lifespan, I am willing to pay any price.” Cosmo did not try to hide anything and stated his purpose frankly.

Knowing his date of death is no secret to many.

"I see! Please don't worry, I will deliver a satisfactory work to you within a month at most." Zhang Cheng stood up, placed one hand on his chest, and bowed.

Perhaps a few months ago, the longevity potion would have been a considerable challenge for him.

But now...

After visiting the continent of Faerûn, he had acquired at least twelve different recipes for longevity potions.

In fact, in the continent of Faerûn, any high-level mage with some ability would use longevity potions to escape death.

As early as the Netheril civilization, arcanists used this method time and again to evade the ancient god of death, Jaeger. In modern times, they have innovated and improved the method several times, with the most potent version even able to postpone death by as much as twenty-five years.

The only thing to do next is to select a suitable formula from these recipes and send it to the Speaker.

He believed that the wise old man before him would surely be able to give him what he wanted most—knowledge.

Chapter 588 Longevity Potion (Part 2)

"Can you really concoct a life-extending potion?" After the brief meeting ended, Lavern grabbed Zhang Cheng and asked with a curious expression.

After all, the Supreme Council is not a bureaucratic institution in the ordinary world. They don't get together to waste time talking about trivial matters. The hot-tempered representatives might even roll up their sleeves, take off their shoes, and put on a spectacular fight scene.

On the contrary, the efficiency of the underworld is known for being fast, stable, accurate, and ruthless, so the brief discussion lasted less than ten minutes before it came to an end.

However, having heard about the life-extending potion, some members of parliament did not rush to leave; Lavern was one of them.

Looking into the other person's eyes, which were filled with a desire to probe, Zhang Cheng nodded without hesitation: "Of course! But it's very troublesome! You have to understand that vitality is something that cannot be replenished by alchemy alone. It also requires some precious and special raw materials, such as the essence extracted from living beings."

"You mean... the life-extending potion requires sacrificing one's life as a price?" Lavern frowned subconsciously.

“No, I didn’t say that. What I meant was that one of its most important ingredients is extremely precious and rare,” Zhang Cheng explained ambiguously.

"I understand!"

Lavern realized this might involve some secrets about alchemy and quickly left using teleportation magic that kept him in his seat.

The other councilors followed suit, and soon Zhang Cheng was the only one left in the empty underground chamber.

Realizing that there was indeed no one else around, he smiled and sighed, "Who wouldn't want to escape death and prolong their life? I hope this bait can bring me more knowledge, as well as clues about the seal and the key."

The words had barely left his mouth!

He too transformed into a phantom and vanished along with the candlelight on the table.

……

Meanwhile, in an abandoned factory in the suburbs of New York, the succubus Reines stood on a high platform, looking down at the densely packed shadow vampires kneeling on the ground below. She raised her whip and shouted, "Rejoice! You lowly ants! From this day forward, you will follow me, the great Shadow Queen, to learn powerful magic and become part of the spellcaster's legion."

“Great Queen, may I ask what the Legion is?” A vampire nobleman who looked to be around thirty years old raised his head and asked in a slightly trembling voice.

"Hmph! You lowly soul are not worthy to know the Legion's name! Over the next year, I will teach you what true power is, power sufficient to destroy everything. After your studies are complete, I will conduct a test on you. Those who fail will be eliminated and become food for the victors. The Legion has no need for trash!" Reines lashed out with his whip, giving his answer with a cold laugh.

As a member of the Burning Legion, she was not a compassionate saint, but a cruel, cunning, and power-hungry demon.

In fact, from the very beginning, she was prepared to eliminate half of the people.

In other words, of the more than 400 vampires currently on the market, only 200 will survive, and the rest will be consumed in the process of trying to control the shadow energy.

Before conducting comprehensive testing on a race, no one knows exactly how much shadow energy they can withstand, nor what kind of manipulation method suits them best.

In short, everything requires a lot of experimentation.

Experiments inevitably bring all sorts of unexpected events, even death and disaster.

……