When they arrived at the location of the magical essence formed by the phenomena of nature in this area of the Valley of Lightning, Vicente sighed in disappointment when he came upon a pentagram that he could fully see.",

"That's not what I'm looking for," he commented to the group, summoning a special storage device for such pentagrams from his spatial ring.

The necklace he had used to store Nina's pentagram was currently with her, as he expected Nina to advance to the 4th stage during his journey north. However, for someone of Vicente's caliber, acquiring devices to store these essences was easy.

"Why not? This essence will turn cyan as soon as you become an Archmage, Vicente," Elmo said, watching the young man collect it. "It might even turn cyan before then. If we find a cyan pentagram for you later, you could advance even before you expect."

The others looked at Vicente doubtfully, thinking he was being too demanding given the circumstances.

Vicente listened silently. Would they understand his true motives if he explained them?

Surely, some of them would be curious to see an indigo essence appear on the continent. But was it really necessary?

Everyone there believed that as long as Vicente became a Beginner Archmage with six pentagrams in each of his magical forms, he would be able to fight even Demien Bloodthorne.

An indigo pentagram would be extraordinary, but they didn't see it as necessary.

"Think about it. Not only will you be able to make a breakthrough on your path, but you'll also be able to absorb two more pentagrams after that."

"Think about it. You could not only advance on your path but also absorb two more pentagrams later," Bonfi tried to persuade him. "You'd have the perfect configuration for your Throne of Darkness."

Vicente sighed. "Tell you what, if we don't find a cyan pentagram like the one I want within the next 12 months, I'll absorb this essence as my fourth pentagram."

'That should be enough to settle the matter for now... I can't tell you how difficult it is to reach the indigo grade. Even if I only absorb cyan essences from now on, it will still be difficult for me to reach that goal.'

While three new cyan pentagrams might give him enough to reach the indigo grade in the first of his essences, two cyan pentagrams and one green pentagram didn't have a good chance of doing the same.

For Vicente, reaching the indigo grade was something that could happen if he tried hard enough, not long after he ascended to the 6th stage, or that would only happen if he became a Magus.

Becoming a Magus was simply too difficult, even for someone like him, and it was also a farewell point for anyone on this continent.

Vicente's companions agreed to wait, regretting his insistence on a perfect setup.

But in a year's time, their biggest problems would have just begun, so even those who thought it was a mistake said nothing against Vicente's decision.

After storing the pentagram, Vicente heard Torne estimate the time they had with this essence. 'It will be impossible to give this essence to Nina, master. Unlike Prisiche's necklace, this item will store the pentagram for a maximum of three years. In that period, you must find someone to absorb it, or it will be lost.'

Vicente agreed with Torne and imagined that it was impossible for Nina to reach the 5th stage in only 3 years. Besides, he didn't know if it would be safe for him to return to the province in three years.

By his reckoning, in just over 3 years, it would be time for Demien Bloodthorne to emerge from his seclusion and bring terror to the continent once again!

'As soon as I find any newly promoted Dark Path Sovereigns or Paragons, I'll give them this pentagram.'

With the situation resolved, the group moved on through the Valley of Lightning to find the pentagrams of Jacob, Paul, and Ayden.

...

Six months flew by as Vincent's group traveled through the northern region!

After obtaining the previous green pentagram, the party traveled through the Valley of Lightning for three months, searching for essences for the Throne of Darkness, but also for the three Beginning Archmages in the party.

During this time, the group gained much, including a new ally, but also the three essences that Ayden, Paul, and Jacob were missing.

The Valley of Lightning was still an area full of beings of various paths and high levels, just as it had been during Vicente's first time there. As such, the group encountered several High-level Paragons and Beginner Archmages in the area, so it didn't take them long to achieve their goals in the area.

Ayden was the first to receive his new essence, having defeated a compatible beast with the help of his companions a week after they found the green pentagram formed by nature.

After Ayden, Paul received his pentagram just before Vicente encountered the werewolf that had temporarily allied with him when he first came to the area.

This werewolf hated vampires and quickly agreed to join the group on their journey.

Jacob's pentagram was the most difficult for the group to find, forcing them to wander the Valley of Lightning for nearly a month and a half before they found it. This essence came from a High-level Paragon beast, which was difficult to find on the continent.

After obtaining the pentagrams from the team's three weakest Archmages, the group moved on to the Majestic Treefrog Grove to continue Vicente's plans.

The great domain ruled by elves and dragons was near to the Valley of Lightning. Since it was only 7 weeks away by the shortest route, or 10 weeks by the longest route, the group had reached the border of this realm a few days ago!

However, entering Majestic Treefrog Grove would not be as easy as getting there!

...

About five kilometers away from the entrance of Majestic Treefrog Grove, on the southern border of this territory of over 500,000 square kilometers northeast of Polaris Realm, Vicente's group was camped on a mountain in the area.

From this spot, Qiang looked over the border between his current location and the most sacred territory for Light Path beasts on the continent, a task he had been performing for days.

From his position, he could see not only several 6th stage monsters but also some 5th stage superior vampires!