The Mage King controlled the space, constantly shortening the distance between the five people. Meanwhile, Captain Steve, who was standing above, had keenly sensed the changes in his surroundings and spotted the newcomer.
"Will you do it, or should I?" the Mage King asked Luke again before taking action. He had considerable experience in addressing the effects of the new energy eroding one's mental will.
"You come." Luke took a step back. He really wanted to see the wizard's solution with his own eyes. Nick beside him opened his eyes wide and wanted to see it too.
Captain Steve, distracted in mid-air, was given an opportunity by Blood Shadow Frank's combat awareness to kick him directly from mid-air to the ground. The blood-red energy stirred up by the explosion collided with the Captain's energy, creating a bowl-shaped energy layer at the point of contact.
"I'm fine!" The captain, who had fallen at everyone's feet, somersaulted back to his feet. Looking at the Mage King and the others who were showing signs of fighting, he warned, "Don't get hit by his attacks, or you'll be in trouble!"
Before the Mage King and others could respond to the captain, the blood shadow Frank in the air had already appeared in front of the captain from mid-air again through the mark in a flash. This time, his fist with blood-red gloves hit the shield raised by the captain.
The captain flew out once more. But he also created an opportunity for the Mage King. The Mage King swiftly stepped forward and slapped the blood-stained Frank's chest. A shadowy figure, nearly stained blood-red, was blasted through by the blow. Judging from the shadow's figure and face, it was clearly Frank.
Looking at the suddenly frozen Blood Shadow Frank, Nick was bewildered. How could he learn this? Just slap out a palm and then knock out the opponent's spirit body, or what was like a soul?
"Oh no!" Wang's eyes suddenly widened.
As the attack progressed, Wang could sense a sticky texture. Though he barely managed to knock the opponent's soul out, almost instantly, countless blood-colored threads, their tips like small, open, blood-colored hands, emerged from Blood Shadow Frank's body. With a seemingly slow, yet in reality swift, sensory-disturbing speed, they seized Frank's soul, which had been ejected by the Mage King. Then, with a combined effort, to the astonishment of everyone, they unexpectedly pulled the soul back into their bodies.
The scenes change so quickly, it's like pressing the fast-forward button on a movie.
The Mage King staggered back two steps, looking at his hands with a confused look on his face.
"That shouldn't be the case." The Mage King, basing his judgment on his accumulated experience, concluded that this was the most effective and fastest way to curb the erosion of emotional energy and restore consciousness. Simply place the filter ring on the opponent's finger while the soul is being struck out. After a while, the calming energy would gradually restore consciousness.
Even if he had only just mastered this advanced magic with his newfound power and hadn't yet mastered it completely, the scene before him was still far beyond his expectations. At least, he had never seen such a situation before among wizards who had lost control.
roar!
Blood Shadow Frank resumed his movement, and after letting out a brutal and animalistic roar, his blood-red pupils twisted and stared at Luke and the other two who were nearby.
"I don't think this is good." Nick's heart sank. He could no longer see any rationality in Blood Shadow Frank's eyes, only the ferocity of a starving beast, stalking its prey.
Bang!
Blood Shadow Frank's dagger hit a golden energy shield that appeared out of thin air.
boom!
The instantaneous explosion ripples swept around like a strong wind, and the blood-colored energy ripples that spread forward seemed to have touched a powerful obstacle. A hexagonal honeycomb shield emerged from the void, forming a hemispherical shape to protect the few people.
Each hexagonal shield now had a more complex pattern than before. Nick couldn't understand it, but the Lord of Learning, a Supreme Sorcerer who excluded a very small number of mages like the Ancient One, could see the clue.
"Are you studying magic?" Wang exclaimed in surprise.
"It's just an inappropriate union, not a mature one." Luke shook his head.
A crimson belt slithered out like a snake, and with the help of the captain who had caught up with Blood Shadow Frank, it successfully seized the opportunity to tie up the opponent's body, wrapping the mad Frank into a big blood-red dumpling.
The other party struggled fiercely, the blood-red energy constantly expanding and contracting against the belt. Luke could even feel the pressure from the blood-red energy constantly leaking out from the gaps in the belt.
"Let me try again?" Wang looked at Luke with a weak tone.
"Let me do it and solve it quickly. I still have a research to finish." Luke shook his head.
"What are you going to do?" Nick, who was standing behind, perked up this time. He was indeed completely bewildered by the magic and couldn't understand it, but from Luke's words, he could at least make sense of it.
For example, what new equipment was used?
How effective is this equipment? Is it for sale? How much does it cost?
The next moment, Nick and Wang saw Luke's movements. A deep blue gem, radiating a profound tranquility, suddenly appeared in Luke's palm, as if by magic.
Luke stepped forward and roughly pressed the gem against the mark on Frank's forehead as he continued to struggle.
Soon, under the surprised gazes of the three captains, Frank's struggling strength gradually weakened, and the amplitude of his struggle became smaller and smaller. The blood-red energy that was boiling and swirling on his body like a blood-red flame also showed a tamed attitude under the soothing of the blue light, and from the initial violence, it gave people a rare sense of tranquility.
For about half a minute, the blood-red energy still enveloped Frank's body like an energy suit, but everyone on the scene could see that it was still dangerous, but it no longer possessed the violent aggression it had previously possessed. It was like a volcano that had erupted and then quieted, with no one knowing when it would erupt again.
"What is this?" Nick was shocked. Luke always had something in his hand that made him jealous.
"It's a product of new energy. Another rare emotional force. It's not easy to separate and purify it." Luke stood up and explained.
"Is this a calming power? I can sense it's ability to suppress other emotions. It can make people calmer, more rational, and more intelligent, and it seems to have other effects as well?" The Mage King felt more than Nick. He had already mastered the advanced techniques of using this new energy: how to extract the energy he desired, convert it, and release it as magic. This step was difficult. At least in the entire Supreme Mage lineage, apart from the Ancient One, there were only a handful of people who could achieve his level.
Even at the same stage, being able to skillfully control a certain type of energy, or being proficient in multiple types of energy, and switching between them according to needs and characteristics, can result in a huge difference in strength.
However, those who had seen various kinds of psychic powers among the mages were unfamiliar with Luke's blue energy.
"New energy, like the power of emotions, has opposing forces and a mutually restraining relationship! Tranquil Blue, that's how I named it. Among the many branches of new energy, it's not a common energy. It's a rare quantity. The stronger the emotional fluctuations, the easier it is to collect. Therefore, those strong emotions are mostly love, hate, anger, fear, and so on. These forces are currently the most abundant and relatively easy to collect. Their destructive power is also extremely powerful.
These are the foundations of the new energy. Beyond these, there are also rare, even illusory, conceptual powers. These require more sensitive and sophisticated equipment to collect and purify. Tranquility Blue is a prime example. It has the power to calm and dispel the negative contamination and frenzy brought on by emotional energy, restoring rationality and calmness.
Likewise, it possesses superior resistance to certain enchantment spells, supernatural powers of mind control, and resistance to mental intrusion. As long as you carry a power stone composed of Serenity Blue, you need not worry about any external threats such as mental contamination until its energy is depleted. When it begins to deplete, you will instantly know that you are surrounded by a master of the mental system or a mage skilled in enchantment magic, thus becoming alert and taking targeted measures.
Luke wasn't hiding anything.
"Of course, its flaw is that its destructive power and might are somewhat disappointing. Or to put it simply, if we're talking purely about energy destructive power, it's right at the bottom of the pack. With every gain comes a loss."
"Is it solved so easily?" After listening to Luke's explanation, Nick looked at Frank, who had completely calmed down and stopped struggling, and asked, feeling it was still a little unreal.
Captain America and his opponent engaged in a prolonged confrontation, neither side able to defeat the other in a short period of time. Then, the enigmatic Mage King intervened, but the results were less than satisfactory. Then, Luke, with a simple display of the so-called Blue Crystal of Tranquility, completely seized control of the situation? This seemingly unrealistic success, achieved after such immense effort, feels utterly surreal.
"How troublesome do you think it will be? Do we have to fight him for three days and three nights, until he is exhausted, or we run out of ammunition and food? If it comes to that, I won't even come. Because what you need is just a strong thug, not someone who can really solve the problem. Do you think I can be a thug? If I come here, I must have made the corresponding preparations and have considerable confidence." Luke glanced at Nick from the side.
"Then why were you so troubled on the phone?" Nick was speechless.
"Isn't it troublesome? I was conducting research at the time, and your communication not only disturbed me, but also asked me to put down my ongoing research to help deal with the trouble you caused. For this purpose, I even brought the Wizard King here. Have you calculated the various experimental losses and human costs involved? I will send you a bill later, and you remember to sign it." Luke rolled his eyes.
"You still want a bill?" Nick's hands trembled at the thought. He'd already owed Luke a large sum in the new currency because of his Mind Ring, and now he was broke as a dog. And Luke, who was filthy rich in the new currency, was actually still asking for a bill? After working together for so long, was there really no affection at all?
Luke said clearly, "Look at what you said. Even brothers have to settle accounts. You asked me to come here to help, and I brought people to help you solve the problem. Afterwards, you have to make up for my losses or give me some labor fees or something, right?"
"I thought after working together for so long, our relationship would be a close partnership." Nick sighed.
"That's right. If there is no such relationship, why should I care about you? Do you know how busy I am now? How precious time is? Do you know that even the time for sleep and rest is a luxury for me now? The fact that I can put down what I am doing and rush over to help you deal with the trouble as soon as I receive the call shows that I value our cooperative relationship. Otherwise, why would I come? Just for the new currency that you still want to borrow from me? Do you understand the price of my appearance once?" Luke looked as if it was a matter of course.
Nick was speechless. He'd always loved getting something for free, but it seemed like he'd always failed when it came to getting Luke for free. Now, he'd been reduced to the point where Luke had become his biggest debtor.
"He is indeed the creator of new energy. The mage lineage needs a certain amount of allocation for this Blue of Tranquility." The Mage King next to him interjected.
"Of course, in fact, even without me, Master Ancient One can use magical power to extract the corresponding spiritual energy from it. After all, her authority is no less than mine, enough for her to see through all the secrets of this power. But in terms of convenience and mass production efficiency, Heberon is better at it. I just need the construction period of the city to be faster." Luke also put forward his own requirements.
The Mage King pondered for a moment and nodded: "I will ask the Supreme Mage for instructions when I return."
Nick watched and listened with tears welling up in his eyes, his heart aching. It was clear that Luke had already managed to get most mages to work for him, while S.H.I.E.L.D. was still struggling to gain a firm foothold in this newly formed community of interests. The contrast was simply too great. This scene also galvanized Nick, instantly dispelling any regrets he had felt about disposing of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s dangerous items, and he was now completely and unwaveringly resolved.
"Woo woo woo!"
Just when everyone was thinking about their own things, a muffled humming sound suddenly came from the ground. Looking in the direction of the sound, only half of the head was exposed, and the mouth was tightly sealed with a bandage. Frank, who had regained consciousness and calmness under the influence of the Blue of Silence, was trying his best to make his own sounds to attract the attention of Luke and others.
"You've finally come to your senses, Frank." Nick stepped forward and squatted, looking at his old friend's eyes, which had lost their color and regained their alertness and thinking, and said with some emotion. He had made up his mind. No matter what, this time, he would earn back double the resources and money he had invested in this old friend.
It's time to give the old friend a credit bill too!
At least let the old friend feel the dire straits he is living now!