Black Stripe City.
A city built of huge black stones looks extremely retro and rugged, revealing a wild atmosphere.
It is impossible to verify the ancient times of this city.
The current city lord, Lord Black Mark, defeated the old city lord a hundred years ago and led his tribe into the city, changing its name to "Black Mark City".
The Ancient Saint Empire is actually the earliest name of the Ancient Saint civilization.
At that time, the Ancient Saint Empire was a truly unified country.
The founder of the empire was the first ancient sage in the history of the ancient sage civilization. Later generations called him "the first ancient sage Yuantuo."
It is said that before the emergence of this "first ancient saint", the crawlers were just a group of weak creatures that were eaten by ferocious beasts.
Until the appearance of the "First Ancient Saint", he was like the protagonist of a novel. In just a hundred years, he went from being the chief of a small tribe to conquering all directions, annexing other tribes, and finally forming a unified "Ancient Saint Empire". The title of Ancient Saint also came down from that time.
The Reptiles believe that the "First Ancient Saint" is the "Holy Snake Messenger" who was born in accordance with the will of the Holy Snake and is a god sent from heaven to save the Reptiles from water and fire.
In fact, whether the "First Ancient Saint" is the Holy Snake Messenger.
In short, after the emergence of the Ancient Saint Empire, the civilization of the Reptiles continued to grow, and by feeding on the blood of the ferocious beasts, they were eventually able to compete with the ferocious beasts.
The "First Old Saints" established a unified reptile language and writing system similar to the wizard's common language, and transformed the tribes into city-states.
He also passed down many methods that lead directly to the ancient sage path. These methods are collectively called "Ancient Sage Methods."
Relying on the ancient saint law, the reptile civilization can give birth to ancient saints who are comparable to the "ancient blood beasts", or "ancient beasts", in every era.
Thanks to the protection of these ancient saints, the Reptile civilization has continued to this day.
At the peak of history, which was the later years of the first ancient saints, there were as many as eighteen powerful ancient saints of the same era as the Reptile Civilization, known as the "Eighteen Saints of the Empire".
The Eighteen Saints united around the original ancient saint. Under the leadership of this leader, they not only initially resolved the huge problem of the "ferocious beast" that weighed on the crawlers, but also took the initiative to explore, fight north and south, and expand their territory!
However, with the disappearance of the original ancient saint.
The once unified Crawler Empire is once again facing the same situation as countless human empires in history, with city-states and feudal lords dividing the country, and the chaos continues to this day.
After that, there was no more peerless powerhouse like the "First Ancient Saint" who could subdue many ancient saints, unify all tribes and city-states, and establish an absolutely unified "Ancient Saint Empire".
The separatist rule of the feudal lords and city-states is the main theme of the Ancient Holy Empire today.
Each city-state is a small tribal society with a small population. Its city lord has absolute ruling power and can deal with the residents of his city-state at will.
Today, there are hundreds of city-states in the Ancient Saint Empire.
Some powerful tribes often establish their own city-states and then divide a territory around the city-state.
All non-tribal crawlers in the territory are "foreigners", and their status in the city is lower than that of native people.
Since the disappearance of the first ancient saint, there have been endless wars between city-states for years, and the people are living in misery. Small tribes like the one led by Chief Kaku can only risk their lives and live in the primeval forest where ferocious beasts roam.
Coupled with the invasion of ferocious beasts, external and internal troubles, the ancient saint civilization has declined greatly compared to its peak period.
Today, there are only thirteen ancient saints, each ruling its own territory and finding it difficult to unite. Moreover, the Ancient Saint Empire is facing the dilemma of being surrounded by powerful enemies.
In the south of the Ancient Saint Empire is a vast ocean. In the ocean, there are many powerful civilizations that are no weaker than the Ancient Saint Empire.
The most representative one is the "Mosaur Empire" established by the "Ocean Reptiles". It was an empire established by several ancient saints of the Sea Reptiles who rebelled against the Ancient Saint Empire. Relying on the rich resources of the ocean, it recuperated and eventually rose to power, invading the borders of the Ancient Saint Empire many times.
To the north of the Ancient Holy Empire, in the vast and endless "Intis Mountains", there is a new and powerful empire.
The "Wind God Empire" was established by the "Feather People". According to the crawlers, the Feather People were born later than them. It can even be said that it is not an exaggeration to say that the Feather People are the descendants of a group of mutated crawlers.
However, almost all of the Feathered People have the ability to fly. Relying on their air and space advantages, they have quickly risen among the mountains of Intis and are now invading the northern border of the Ancient Saint Empire.
And in the Ancient Saint Empire, apart from a few powerful Ancient Saints, the only ones who could effectively cause damage to the Feather People and engage in air combat were the Flying Lizards led by the "Ancient Saint Duankong".
Inside Black Stripe City.
Levi and Kaku were sitting in a tavern.
Drinking the extremely bloody "Blood Demon Wine" brewed by the crawlers.
Listening to an old man talking about the ancient and modern history and current situation of the Ancient Saint Empire.
The old man's name is Kane, and he is one of the few cultured people in Black Stripe City.
He used to be the librarian of a city-state where an ancient saint lived. Later, because the ancient saint died in the war, the city-state was destroyed and the library was burned down.
Kane became a slave of foreigners and wandered all the way until he finally ended up in Black Stripe City. Because of his education, he became one of the stewards of the City Lord's Mansion.
In his spare time, he would come to the pub to drink, brag, and show off his knowledge. Gradually, he became quite famous.
"Lord Kane, where did the ancient saints go in the beginning?" Levi asked.
Kane followed the sound and looked at Levi. Levi's red scales caught his special attention.
Because the fire lizard clan has a relatively high status in the Ancient Saint Empire.
Even in foreign cities, the Salamanders do not have to worry about being discriminated against because they are foreigners.
After all, who would dare to discriminate against a powerful race that gave birth to the ancient saints?
Moreover, as we all know, the first ancient saint came from the Salamander clan, which has allowed the Salamander clan to have a relatively transcendent status to this day.
So in Kane's view, the combination of Levi and Kaku is just a pair of young people from the noble Salamander clan, who are traveling around with their Green Lizard servants.
"It is impossible to verify the life of the First Ancient Saint this month, because the history books have long been interrupted by years of war. The lifespan of an ancient saint is no more than 500 years. Some extremely powerful ones may have a lifespan of a thousand years, but compared to the long history of the Ancient Saint Empire, this is just an insignificant wave... So, the First Ancient Saint, alas, is most likely dead." Kane sighed. Throughout the ages, among the many ancient saints recorded in history, only the First Ancient Saint is the one he admires the most.
"If the First Ancient Saint were still alive, how dare the Wind God Empire and the Mosasaur Empire act so presumptuously in front of the Ancient Saint Empire? The First Ancient Saint alone is enough to suppress these traitors of the Reptile Civilization!" Kane said angrily.
"Lord Kane, are there any other countries to the north of the Intis Mountains?" Levi asked.
"I don't know about that. No one can cross the Intis Mountains alive. Those feathered people hovering in the sky and overlooking the earth are not vegetarians." Kane shook his head.
Levi thought in his heart, now it seems that there are three maps that have been explored in this plane.
The Ancient Saint Empire, the Wind God Empire, and the Mosasaur Empire.
The three empires share the same origin and their ancestors can be traced back to the reptilian civilization, but now they have parted ways.
The common problem that troubled the three empires was "ferocious beasts".
"If the two empires next door can contend with the Ancient Saint Empire, there should be no shortage of Ancient Saint warriors. Judging from this, there are dozens of Ancient Saint warriors who are comparable to fourth-ring wizards on the maps I know of today.
In the wizarding world, ordinary mid-level wizarding organizations cannot produce so many level four warriors. The difficulty of conquering this plane is greater than I thought, and I have to take it step by step.
Fortunately, these thirteen ancient saints are not a monolithic group. Perhaps I can sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the tigers, and support an absolute dictator like the original ancient saint as a puppet. In this way, I can control the entire Ancient Saint Empire, rule this country behind the scenes, and then annex the Wind God Empire and the Canglong Empire to explore the wider boundaries of this world. "
Levi muttered to himself.
He already had a preliminary plan in mind.
"Little Salamander, if you are interested in the original ancient saints, if you have the chance, you can go to the city-states where the ancient saints are located. Black Stripe City is a small place after all."
After eating and drinking, Kane touched his stomach, spit out his tongue, and left the tavern leisurely.
He and Levi had a very pleasant chat. It had been a long time since he met a young crawler like Levi who was willing to listen to him talk.
"Thank you, Lord Kane." Levi said with a smile.
In the tavern, Levi and Kaku continued to drink.
"Sir, where are we going next?" Kaku asked.
"City Lord's Mansion." Levi said calmly.
…
City Lord's Mansion.
On the training ground.
A sturdy lizardman covered with gray scales and wearing bone armor was wielding a big sword. The strong wind caused by the swing of the big sword made sand and rocks fly on the training ground, and there was an invisible heat wave spreading over the training ground, with an extraordinary momentum.
This is none other than the Lord of Black Mark City, Monka.
The members of the Black Stripe Tribe are all from the "Black-spotted Lizard" clan, which is a relatively powerful clan among the reptiles. The Black-spotted Lizards have extremely strong defenses and are naturally strong. They are all brave and skilled warriors.
"Lord Monka, there is a member of the Salamander tribe outside asking to see you." The servant came in and said.
"Salamander?" Monka frowned. "Let him in."
没过多久，一位身披赤鳞的火蜥蜴人，带着一位很普通的绿蜥爬行者走了进来。
“拜见城主大人。”这位火蜥蜴人恭敬的说道。
“你找本城主何事？”蒙卡问道。
“我想……当城主。”李维微微一笑。
蒙卡面色一变。
下一刻，李维的身躯爆射而来，火龙真身浮现，熊熊烈焰燃烧，力量符文闪烁。
蒙卡举起大剑，朝着李维斩来，他的体内血液，开始沸腾，白色狼烟冲天而起，他的口中，更是有灼热的炎气喷出，将大剑烧的通红。
“赤灼焚心斩！”蒙卡低声嘶吼，面色痛苦，他知道来者不善，所以一出手，便是全力。
李维不躲不避，布满鳞片的拳头砸在滚烫的剑身上，剑身巨震，震裂蒙卡的手掌心，大剑飞了出去，落在远处。
烧的通红的大剑将地面烤的焦黑，在短时间内化为冒着火焰的焦土，这温度可见一斑。
反观李维的拳头，却是安然无恙，只是略微冒着白烟。
“太弱了。”
电光火石间，李维来到蒙卡背后，大手掐住了蒙卡的脖子，猛地一按。
蒙卡应声而倒，轰的一声，脸砸在大地上，尘土飞扬。
“我只需要轻轻一用力，你就死了。”李维淡淡说道，眸光寒冷。
蒙卡被按在地上，动弹不得。
这位黑纹城的城主，比他想象的还弱一些，感觉实力还不如波刚之流，更别提和三环资深巫师相提并论了。
“你是谁？如今十三位古圣之中，并没有你这样的存在！”蒙卡惊惧的问道。
仅仅一招，就分出胜负。
他和对方的差距太大了，对方绝对是古圣级别的强者。
要知道，他好歹也是古蛇级的强者，在这古圣帝国，唯有古圣，才能轻易的击败他蒙卡。
现如今的十三位古圣，蒙卡都有所了解，和眼前这位最接近的，毫无疑问的焚天古圣。
问题是焚天古圣平时都是坐镇自己的焚天城，怎么可能来自己这小小的黑纹城。
难不成，火蜥蜴一族，居然出现了两位古圣？
“我是谁不重要，重要的是，如果你不乖乖听话，你会死。”李维声音淡漠，他露出一丝古圣气息，古圣威严如潮水一样席卷而来，将蒙卡淹没。
“你……你想干什么？”
“不干什么，停止挣扎，献上你的一丝灵魂，主动和我签订契约，我会保证不杀你，否则……”李维拿出一块契约石板，威胁道。
蜥蜴人也是类人族，按理说，契约石板的契约，也能对其生效，只不过需要对方自行献出灵魂才行。
蒙卡看到那人手中的石板，虽然他不知道这是什么东西，但是毫无疑问，这对他不利。
可是如今这种情况，在这种敌我差距过大的情况下，他似乎也别无选择。
“我照做……”蒙卡叹息一声，说道。
“放心，我这人，向来说到做到。”李维眯眼笑道，令人不寒而栗。
蒙卡只感觉天降横祸，也不知道哪里冒出来的古圣，真的是倒大霉了。
最终，李维和蒙卡签订了一个不平等条约。
签订之后，蒙卡总感觉自己的灵魂之上，似乎多了某种束缚，一旦自己违背契约内容，怕是下场很惨，这让他心如死灰。
“等我猩红龙呼吸法十四阶，契约位置再加一个，便不必如此麻烦了。”李维心道。
他现在猩红契约两个位置，一个给了深海男爵巴格达，另一个则是血族斯克因，这两个都对李维比较重要，没办法解除契约。
门外，守卫似乎听到这边的动静，冲了进来。
“城主大人，没事吧？”守卫问道，
“没事，你退下吧，我和这位火蜥蜴族的朋友切磋了一番。”蒙卡面色平静的说道，内心却是苦涩，这哪里是切磋，这是单方面被碾压……
“古圣大人想做什么？不妨和我明说，我蒙卡不过是一座边陲小城的城主，能力有限，以古圣大人的眼光，想必也不会看上我这座偏远之地的城邦吧？”蒙卡叹气说道。
“你很聪明，也很识时务，识时务者为俊杰，我的目标很简单，统一所有城邦，让古圣帝国再次伟大。”李维看样子十分认真的说道。
“古圣大人……恕我直言，这件事，应该也是其他十三位古圣的目标，但是自最初古圣消失后，再也没有人可以做到一统古圣帝国。”蒙卡说道。
“不试试怎么知道呢？”李维自信的说道。“你的城主，你继续当着就可以了，我只是开个玩笑，我对你的城主之位不感兴趣，我只需要你以后按照我的意思办事就可以了。”
李维不确定现在自己的实力能否稳赢一位古圣，要不然他早去那些古圣坐镇的城邦，将古圣拿下了。
稳妥一点，还是先控制一位普通的城主，等对于这个世界的了解更深之后，逐渐和那些古圣强者接触比较好。
接下来的日子，李维便在黑纹城住了下来。
不得不说，身为黑纹城城主，这蒙卡知道的东西，比卡库多太多了。
李维从蒙卡这边，对于那十三位古圣的情况，有了更深入的了解，而他也从蒙卡这里，得到了他所修行“古圣法”。
在黑纹城的一间府邸内，李维坐在书桌前，书桌上，有一张粗糙的似乎由兽皮制作的纸张。
兽皮纸上面的文字是爬行者文明的通用语，这个李维已经掌握，除此之外，还有各种各样的动作，姿势。
当他将其看完之后，陷入沉思。
“这貌似和骑士呼吸法传承图差不多，唯一的不同是，这古圣法上面，只有小人图案，却没有如黑蛇呼吸法那样的衔烛黑蛇图……阉割修改版的骑士呼吸法吗？”
据蒙卡所述，古圣法的修行，便是以古圣法上面的记录的口诀，要领，姿势，动作为基础，再吞噬大量的特定凶兽肉，从中获取能量，改造蜥蜴人的肉身，最终不断实现肉身的进化。
由虫化蜥，蜥化为蛇，蛇老变古，蜕变成圣。
这便是古圣法修行的四个阶段。
蒙卡给予李维的古圣法，乃是他在一处废弃的古圣神庙遗迹得到的，叫做“炎血古圣法”。
修行此古圣法门，必须要以一种叫做“炎兽”的血肉作为基础，长期服用。
以古圣法吸收炎兽血肉中独有的“炎血能量”，并且用这种“炎血能量”改造全身，炼脏易筋，洗髓淬骨，换血之后，便是古圣。
越是实力强大的炎兽，其效果越好。
修行到至高境界，便可以比肩炎兽之中的王者。
古兽·炎血狂猎龙。
这是一种生活在地底，时常与岩浆为伴的强大存在。
炎血狂猎龙的体内，含有“古代血脉”。
所谓古代血脉，据说是这世界诞生之初，屹立于亿万生灵顶端的几位“古代王者”所留下的血脉。
天空王者·奥瑟罗斯，森林王者·迪乌西斯，海洋王者·厄尔尼斯，地底王者·莫比尤斯。
四位古代王者，代表了创世的地火风水，各自统治着四大古代王国。
据说，四位古代王者，都是至高无上的圣蛇大人的麾下，遵从圣蛇意志，创造了这个世界，并且维持世界秩序运作。
在那个时候，无论是羽民，还是爬行者，都没有诞生。
只有古代王者所统率的不同阵营的凶兽驰骋在天空，森林，海洋，甚至是地底。
所以，无论是古圣帝国，亦或者风神帝国，沧龙帝国，都对古代血脉极为忌惮。
再后来，强大的古代帝国，似乎在一夜之间，分崩离析，四位古代王者也相继陨落。
古代王者的血肉被幸存的凶兽分食，诞生了最初的古兽，爬行者文明，大概率也是在这个时候诞生的。
这些，都是李维这段时间，从凯恩老头那边得到的不知真假的传说故事。
李维隐隐约约有感觉，无论是“古代王者”，亦或者“最初古圣”，以及“古圣法”等等。
这些东西，都和那位进入这里的上古巫师脱不开关系。
“是谁？进入了这里，做这一切的目的，又是什么？”
李维望着记载古圣法的图纸，内心沉思。
……
翌日。
李维望着蒙卡派人送来的炎兽肉。
这是一块看起来很普通的大肉，约有百斤重，特别结实，而且死去这么久了，表面还散发着高温，这应该就是所谓的“炎血能量”。
李维从中取了一点血液，放入罗琳水晶。
【赤火蛇血脉56％，石红蜥血脉68％……冥灯龙血脉1.5％。】
看到这里，李维面色一变。
“冥灯龙？”
他的数据库之中，并没有这种龙族的信息。
“等以后有机会的话，得查一下冥灯龙到底是什么龙族？”
在这个世界，李维已经找到了两种龙族的血脉后裔。
翡翠龙，冥灯龙。
这段时间，李维研究了爬行者文明所信仰的至高圣蛇。
Judging from the records and descriptions of the holy snake that have been left behind, the holy snake is an Ouroboros with its head and tail connected. It coils in the sky, spinning continuously, emitting holy light, driving away darkness, and illuminating believers, just like the sun.
From this point of view, the Holy Snake has similarities with Levi's family emblem, the Black Snake.
However, Levi did not see the most obvious feature, "the candle in its mouth", so he did not dare to be sure that the holy snake was the black snake.
And now, he has discovered the blood of the Dark Lantern Dragon in the body of a ferocious beast that contains ancient blood.
According to legend, the ancient bloodline is the bloodline of the four kings under the Holy Snake.
"The Dark Lantern Dragon, could it be the Black Snake with a Candle in its Mouth... Could it be that the Black Snake is a general under the command of the Holy Snake? Or, is it the Holy Snake's vest..."