Imprisoned for a Trillion Years, I Was Worshipped by All Gods!

“Meteors…? Why are there meteors here?!”

As this thought flashed through the middle-aged man’s mind, his face instantly tensed.

It didn’t take long for him to realize—this kind of reality-bending magical assault could only mean one thing: behind Alan stood the shadow of a Legendary-tier mage!

BOOM!

The first explosion rocked the lake. Its once-tranquil surface bubbled like boiling water as a hail of meteors rained down, engulfing the man entirely.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

He didn’t even have the chance to raise a proper defense. Several massive meteors slammed down in rapid succession, smashing him into the depths of the lake with merciless force.

But he wasn’t stupid. The moment his body came into contact with those burning rocks, he instinctively dove deeper into the lake, using the drag of the water to soften their impact.

And indeed, it worked—somewhat. Though the meteors battered him black and blue and left his body covered in injuries, they didn’t take his life.

When the meteor shower finally ended, the lake calmed. Only a few clusters of tiny bubbles rose slowly to the surface.

Eventually, the middle-aged man emerged far away from Alan, hoping to flee in embarrassment.

But just as he was about to turn and escape, a chilling, raspy voice whispered behind him.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

His heart skipped a beat. With a rusted stiffness, he turned his head—only to see an aged figure standing solemnly upon the surface of the lake, hands clasped behind his back, gaze as sharp as ice.

Old Gayle.

Before the man could even open his mouth, Gayle stepped forward and grabbed him by the hair, yanking him clean out of the water.

The man struggled desperately, but it was no use. No matter how strong he was, he couldn’t escape the grasp of this Legendary mage.

With his free hand, Gayle pulled out a silver flask from his robes and took a leisurely sip.

Then, without even looking at Alan, he said calmly, “These shameless old fools think they can just barge in and stir up trouble? I won’t allow it. You go on ahead—I’ll take care of this one.”

Alan gave a nod and didn’t say anything more. Time was tight, and gratitude could wait. He turned and dashed off without hesitation.

Not long after Alan’s figure disappeared into the trees, Gayle turned around slowly, staring in the direction Alan had gone. His hoarse voice muttered to the wind:

“I won’t make the same mistake again, Teacher… never again.”

…

After leaving the lake far behind, Alan sprinted west, toward the heart of the rainforest.

Earlier, when Gayle had appeared—not only had he eliminated the threat of the robed man, but he’d also used mana projection to manifest a map directly into Alan’s field of vision.

A red dot marked Isabella’s position, right in the center of the jungle. The other three teammates were also en route to that location.

It seemed Gayle had made contact with them as well.

That news brought a deep sigh of relief to Alan’s chest. Since the names were displayed on the route map, that meant Gayle had secured their safety too.

In truth, Gayle—headmaster of Sirius Academy—had arrived at the ruin site shortly after Alan’s group had entered.

He had stayed hidden, however, due to the interference of none other than Stephen.

At that very moment, Stephen stood outside the ruin, accompanied by a woman in a white robe. The two watched the events unfold inside via mana projection, observing every action as if through a glass window.

Watching Alan survive yet another close encounter, the woman furrowed her brows.

“The Mist Witch Monica… and that man Frederick, the so-called ‘Piercing Water Fang’ with a bounty that just crossed ten million—they’re both dead, slain by Alan.”

She narrowed her eyes. “When Gayle suddenly attacked Frederick’s steward, you didn’t look surprised. In fact… you didn’t even try to help. Why?”

Stephen let out a cold snort. “Help? Why would I help?”

He turned slightly and sneered.

“Frederick was a noble of the Kingdom of Yor. Not only did they lose a top-tier successor in this operation, but now their family’s old steward—a man who’d already stepped into the Legendary tier—has also perished here. Do you think they’ll let this go?”

The white-robed woman fell silent. Her gaze toward Stephen had subtly shifted. A trace of wariness now crept into her eyes.

On the surface, Stephen appeared to be manipulating events through a bounty—a calculated gamble, using others to do his dirty work.

But in reality, everyone had been outplayed by this wily old fox.

Stephen didn’t care about Alan’s death nearly as much as he cared about something else.

What he truly wanted… was for these attackers to die.

Because the more attackers that perished by Alan’s hand, the more enemies Alan would make.

Sirius Academy might be able to fend off some bounty hunters, but if they were targeted by nations and major factions, even they would be powerless to resist.

That was why Stephen seemed so calm—because to him, it didn’t matter who died inside the ruins.

If Alan died, then it was mission accomplished.

But if Alan lived, the weight of all the slain elite attackers—each backed by powerful forces—would turn into shackles around his neck, dragging him deeper and deeper toward inevitable doom.

After a while, the woman finally spoke again, this time with a strange tone of admiration.

“Still… watching all his battles unfold from start to finish, I must admit—Alan truly is gifted. Among all the mages who’ve emerged in the past few years—no, even the past decade—perhaps only Duke Alice of the Rose can match him in talent.”

She gave Stephen a meaningful glance. “You were right. If he lives… he’ll become a massive threat to your Lioncrest Academy.”

Stephen’s expression remained unreadable as he nodded.

With a measured tone, he murmured, “Any prey I set my eyes on… will never leave alive.”

…

Meanwhile, atop the mountain overlooking the ruins, Daniel and Emperor Denken were also watching through mana projection, examining the battlefield below.

Suddenly, Daniel paused the feed and zoomed in on two corpses.

He frowned.

“Those two… isn’t that the Mist Witch of the Principality of Felice, and the Piercing Water Fang from the Kingdom of Yor?”

Denken’s expression darkened as he nodded.

“That’s right. Both were notable young talents, well-known across the New Star Rankings. They also had bounties on their heads. I didn’t expect them to be lured in by the reward and take part in this operation against Alan.”

Suddenly, he seemed to realize something.

His lips trembled slightly as he pointed at the screen.

“That damned Stephen… he used such a vicious tactic on a mere youth?! Has he no dignity left as a mage?”

Daniel raised an eyebrow.

Seeing Daniel’s confusion, Denken quickly coughed and explained, “Stephen brought all these people here not to assist, but to bait them into attacking Alan. His real plan was to let Alan kill them, and then face a whirlwind of vengeance from their factions.”

“Even if Alan isn’t killed outright, he’ll be dragged down, worn out by endless retaliation.”

Daniel turned his back to the screen, his expression unreadable—but he showed no signs of concern.

In fact, he seemed oddly… amused.

With a slight smile tugging at his lips, he murmured, “Heh. So Stephen thought of all that? Not too stupid, I suppose…”

Denken, puzzled by his reaction, asked, “You really don’t seem the least bit worried about Alan or his team?”

Daniel turned and met the Emperor’s eyes, replying with a chuckle:

“Worried? Why would I be worried?”

“I just think Stephen’s scheme is brilliant—truly brilliant!”

The gleam in Daniel’s eye was unmistakable.

And if Denken couldn’t tell he was being sarcastic by now, then he didn’t deserve his crown.

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