Chapter 319: Maximum Alert

The months passed in the blink of an eye. Before Priam knew it, there was only one day left until the sect’s admission test for new Mages.

He walked toward the training grounds. As he approached, the air vibrated with thunderous roars and lightning that snaked across the skies. When he arrived, he was met with an intense battle.

A gigantic winged beast was fighting side by side with a poisonous black serpent, facing Meien and Suien.

Those were Arvid and Mo Lan, two of the beasts contracted by Dandara. After arriving in this world, the marks that restricted them disappeared, allowing them to fight at their full capacity.

Both creatures were already considered prodigies in their home world, capable of going toe-to-toe with Mage Masters. In their true forms... perhaps only Level 9 Mage Masters at the peak of their power could defeat them in a one-on-one duel.

Fighting as a group with the other beasts and under Dandara’s tactical command, possibly only a Sage could triumph — and that was without even considering Dandara herself fighting at full strength.

Officially, Dandara was the second strongest member of the faction, behind only Priam.

Ever since she recovered part of her divine power, she had become a true nightmare for any opponent.

During this period, all nine beasts brought from the other world had been properly registered with the sect. The Celestial Beast’s egg had also hatched, but Dandara still hadn’t had time to feed the hatchling and accelerate its growth; for now, it was just a weak newborn creature.

Dandara had devoted herself completely to training the twins. On top of that, they received the new knowledge made available by Priam, as well as monthly Alchemy and Inscription lessons from Validar and Janna.

Priam stopped some distance away, positioning himself beside his mother and father, who were completely engrossed in the battle.

Dandara was farther ahead, giving orders in a stern tone and correcting the twins’ posture.

They were forced to fight as a pair, applying synchronized combat methods that they would eventually need to teach to their future soldiers; this significantly limited their actions.

The two beasts were also holding back their full power. Mo Lan, for example, was using the herbal poison she had gained, rather than her Calamity Poison. Even so, they maintained pressure at the maximum level the twins could withstand.

After nearly an hour of uninterrupted combat, Meien and Suien positioned themselves on opposite sides, surrounding the two creatures.

Suien roared as she drew her secret fire dagger.

*BOOOM!*

With an agile movement, she unleashed an attack that generated a colossal explosion of flames.

The fire rose toward the heavens, engulfing Arvid. However, Suien relinquished control over the element. Instantly, Meien took control of the flames in the air, activating her elemental bloodline to amplify the magic.

It was a perfectly synchronized combined attack.

*KBOOOOOM!*

A second explosion engulfed Mo Lan on the ground.

The two beasts emerged unharmed, but stopped moving, recognizing the success of the tactic.

"Good job. You won," Dandara declared with a firm yet satisfied expression.

"You’ve finally learned to trust each other and truly work as a team. If you maintain this coordination and manage to teach it to your soldiers, the future of our faction will be glorious."

The twins turned toward Dandara and smiled excitedly.

"YES!" they roared together, overflowing with energy.

At that moment, Priam approached.

As soon as they noticed his presence, both of them smiled brightly.

Priam took two small, ornate boxes from his spatial ring. The two stared at them in confusion.

"I prepared some gifts for you. A reward for all your hard work," he said softly.

Meien and Suien’s eyes shone like stars. He stepped closer and opened both boxes in his hands at the same time.

"!"

The two girls widened their eyes. Inside were two incredibly beautiful pairs of earrings — simple in design, yet brilliant and imbued with magical power.

Priam picked up the first pair. Stopping one step away from Suien, he personally removed the ordinary earring from the Mortal Plane that she wore as an ornament and replaced it with the magical earrings.

Then he went over to Meien and did the same.

"They’re...!"

Before he could finish explaining, the two of them jumped at him at the same time, wrapping him in a tight hug.

Dandara, Seien, and Boey watched the scene from a distance, wearing faint smiles.

Everyone around them had already noticed the deep connection that bound the trio together — an inexplicable bond. It was as if Priam had never been separated from the twins, following every stage of their growth. The trust and affinity between them were absolute.

Priam gently patted both their heads.

"Don’t get so excited over something so small. I have high expectations for you tomorrow. Remember to never underestimate anything or anyone, and to judge people strictly by their actions."

"Yes!" they replied in perfect sync.

"Good. Besides, I received some confidential information: the final stage of the test will take place in a domain inhabited by many Nature Spirits. Since you haven’t had time to assimilate our race’s Ancestral Art yet, take advantage of the opportunity to form a contract with your first spiritual partner."

The two nodded firmly.

Over the past few months, Boey and Orlaith had obtained their first spiritual partners, while Shione, Lumiere, and Flaris had already reached the second. The power of the group had increased exponentially.

Another crucial detail: Priam had asked Mishnar to provide three additional Creation Runes for his family during the next welcoming ceremony for the new Mages. With those, his mother, father, and Orlaith could finally advance to Mage Masters.

Of course, this wasn’t against the rules. The entire sect gained an immense amount of power from the Sovereigns’ blessing, which was divided equally among the branches.

All the surplus returned to the main sect, so it wouldn’t cost the branch much to do this, especially since they probably wouldn’t recruit that many new Mages. Still, Priam had to burn several million points in exchange.

After training ended, everyone returned to the building, where they gathered for a celebratory meal.

Dandara sat radiantly beside Priam, chatting animatedly with everyone without the slightest hint of shyness. Priam’s mother and Orlaith seemed like old friends of Dandara, treating her with immense affection and respect.

Even Boey showed genuine admiration for her.

Dandara had truly won them all over.

Everyone had already gotten used to her abrupt personality changes and ended up having fun with them. Whenever she took on her naive and eccentric side, everyone took advantage of it to ask random questions and laugh at her absurd answers.

When she activated her "Final Boss" side, everyone took advantage of her lucidity and imposing presence to clear up serious questions and absorb valuable lessons.

Her intermediate personalities kept everyone curious about what would come out of them. In the end, having Dandara around guaranteed that no one would ever get bored.

---

Early in the morning, the twins left for the registration area for young Mages, outside the branch’s borders.

Meanwhile, Priam remained in his faction’s territory, waiting for news about the exam.

...

...

...

"!"

Priam opened his eyes when he sensed a presence approaching. As he opened the door to his quarters, he found Dandara standing there with a radiant, ear-to-ear smile.

"They passed! Their performance was perfect!" Dandara announced, her voice choked with emotion.

Priam answered with a faint smile, but the very next second...

**BUUZZZ!!**

Priam’s eyes widened.

He pulled out his emblem, which began vibrating with unprecedented violence as it glowed with an intense crimson hue. When he turned toward Dandara, he saw that her emblem was displaying exactly the same phenomenon.

Dandara’s expression instantly changed to shock.

"It’s the sect’s maximum alert signal! Something extremely serious has happened! All disciples must report to the central square immediately!"