It took a lot of energy and strength to connect minds.
He could only find two words to describe such a kind of feeling: burning and chaotic.
The burning sensation resulted from the Origin of Magic. Although the Origin of Magic was where all kinds of power stemmed from, what everything returned to, and also what created the Realm of Minds, it would destroy everything coming near it before its upgrade.
As for the chaotic feeling, it came from minds themselves.
Once magic power reached a certain point, it would leave marks on a person's mind.
Numerous minds converged as streams merged with the ocean. Some of them sank to the bottom, leaving the slightest trace behind them while others floated off with the tidal waves.
The difference between the two lay whether minds had consciousness.
That was what parted higher minds from lower ones.
The ones sinking to the bottom were useless, whereas the floating ones indicated that they had entered the Realm of Mind before. Even if they had just been there once, they differentiated themselves from others.
Hackzord was one of those who was good at controlling minds.
He was not only acknowledged by the Origin of Magic but also obtained the ability to connect with minds at will.
This enabled him to search for some valuable information.
But he did not do such things quite often.
Minds intertwined and influenced each other. If he stayed there for too long, his mind would be contaminated. Besides, it was easy to get lost in the midst of wild streams of minds. Many people had indeed lost the sense of direction after they entered the Realm of Minds, leaving their soulless bodies behind in the real world. Hackzord did not want to be one of them.
The main reason, however, was that Hackzord did not like it here.
Even though he was one of the top mind controllers, he could not linger too long.
Without the support of a body, the mind would eventually sink to the Origin of Magic. Newly awakened individuals would soon replace him, as everything was subject to changes. He would eventually vanish into a puff of smoke if he did not upgrade himself. Watching his own mind dancing up and down was like watching his own life slowly draw close to its end. It was not a pleasant experience.
Suddenly, Hackzord sensed something familiar.
"Is this... Kabradhabi?"
He was surprised.
"Why is he so weak like he's dying?" he wondered.
Kabradhabi should not have been that weak even if those low lives had destroyed his body. Although his mind was now at the bottom, it was, after all, the mind of an upgraded one. As the commander of the Western Front Army, he would not lose his consciousness upon dying.
Nonetheless, the Kabradhabi in front him was way weaker than the upgraded one he knew. He was even weaker than a female insect. With such feeble magic power, Kabradhabi should have had no way to enter the Realm of Mind.
Hackzord stretched out his non-existing hands and slowly grabbed that thread of mind.
"Sky Lord, " a voice said, waking him up from the Realm of Mind, "the king is summoning you."
He turned around, cast the guard a glance and said, "Noted. You may leave."
"Yes."
Hackzord let go of the legacy shard gleaming in red and zoomed toward the top of the Birth Tower.
After they inherited a part of the civilization, they made great progress in their magic power research. The invention of symbiosis had freed them from magic stones. Even the Birth Tower had developed some new abilities, such as amplifying the effect of magic power and resonating with other Birth Towers.
The resonation between different Birth Towers enabled local lords to communicate with the king directly.
The thick, wet mists surrounding the top of the tower made Hackzord feel better. He put his hand on the tower and started to concentrate his mind.
"Sky Lord is at your service, my king."
"How did the plan go?" the king's voice rang off the tower. "We don't have much time left."
"Did something happen at the Sky-sea Realm again?" Hackzord asked instantly.
"Yes, something quite wild happened there. Most people suggested ignoring it, given that the Deity of Gods is close to its completion. They maintain that once the Deity of Gods comes into use, we would be able to reverse the situation, starting to attack the enemy rather than just defending against them."
"Deity of Gods!"
Hackzord was thunderstruck.
"So, finally, they're having... the ultimate legendary weapon?"
For years, they had been striving to go beyond the restriction of mineral Magic Stones to travel around in the world at will. Now, their dream was finally coming true.
Like the name suggested, this was a God's gift. It meant that they were another step closer to the Origin of Magic.
Sky Lord expressed his admiration for thie king through his mind.
"What's your thought on this?"
"Something unexpected happened at the Western Front," said Hackzord. He had wanted to tell the king that everything was fine, considering that the king had already the Sky-sea Realm to worry about. He did not want to place more burden on his shoulder. However, he should also be absolutely loyal to the king by not making any decisions for him. At this thought, he changed his mind. "My commander's report shows..." Hackzord broke off and then decided to address formally, as this was also how he used to call himself. "Those human beings changed a lot in the past 400 years, particularly in their combat methods. Our vanguards suffered a minor loss, but it won't impact our plan in general."
The king slipped into silence after hearing the report. He then asked, "Is it a result of evolution?"
"It has nothing to do with evolution but more with the usage of devices and natural elements, for example, fire that we aren't quite familiar with."
"Not even magic power?"
"I'm afraid so. My commander planned to capture some men and some of their weapons like we used to. Unfortunately, our attempt was unsuccessful," Hackzord said. "My commander suggests me sending some reinforcements to the Western Front or looking for the reason via the Realm of Mind."
"Did any upgraded ones fall in men's hands?" asked the king, who was seemingly unimpressed. "I did expect that this would happen one day, since we've lowered the upgrading requirement, but it seems too soon to me. I remember the commander of the Western Front is the one you highly speak of, a what you called a genius. Are you sure he fulfilled his due diligence?"
Hackzord bent his head immediately.
"So, did you find anything?"
"Nothing. He barely has any magic power left, so I couldn't get many details out of him." He hesitated for a moment and then said, "But..."
"But what...?"
"When my mind touched his, I somehow saw extremely bright flames... It might just be an illusion."
"If they're really fires, then never mind," the king snapped. "Although we rarely use them, we know enough about them. Plus, we stopped learning from human beings a long time ago. As for your first request, I'll decline it for you. We should focus more on the attack at the Sky-sea Realm. I can't give you more troops and I certainly won't send you the troops who are supposed to guard our headquarters. Don't forget though, the legacy shard that determines the upgrading of our kinds is now in your custody!"
"I understand."
"Very well then. Make sure our plan goes smoothly. Once we have the Deity of Gods, we'll gain the eventual victory." The king's voice trailed off and gradually faded out of his mind.