The Golem Mage

Power Stones & Power Crystals

The Lanzt family patriarch was drenched in sweat, a clear sign of genuine fear as he stared at the newly summoned golem.

In the city, many had long underestimated the Golem Path Mages of the Gordons Clan, assuming their combat abilities paled in comparison to traditional mages and without a golem matching their realm, people believed they were as good as useless.

That perception persisted even though the Gordons’ Patriarch had reached the same cultivation realm as the city lord, it was widely assumed that none of their famed “Big 3” golems of the Patriarch had been able to advance to Tier 7.

Because upgrading a golem to the High-Rank Realm was a monumental task, it required rare and costly resources, often enough to cripple a mid tier clan’s treasury if mishandled.

Tier 7 was regarded as the realm of elite mages as it is the beginning of the High ranks, and throughout history, only a few members of the Gordon Clan had succeeded in reaching that level with a golem, but George Gordon’s ascent was different.

His growing strength had quietly instilled fear in the other noble families of the Estonia city, though none dared to admit it publicly.

Unfortunately, the one confronting him now was one of the weakest family heads, the Lanzt family Patriarchs.

Even looking at the golem filled him with dread, the blood-red glow in its eyes and the suffocating aura of raw killing intent that rolled off it were unmistakable, as the golem had locked its gaze on the Lanzt Clan’s patriarch.

“I sincerely apologize, George. I’ll compensate your family for everything—just end this madness. I’m already trembling. Please, recall your golem,” the Lanzt patriarch begged.

“Let him go, old man,” Alec whispered to his grandfather, not wanting any conflict sparked on his behalf.

The old man simply scoffed.

“Because the children are watching, I’ll let this go, but the power stones belong to us.”

“What?! That’s daylight robbery! My family’s younger generation held the gate of this location, and many of our retainers died during this brutal exercise! We need those power stones to recover our losses!”

The Lanzt patriarch protested, his face twisted in outrage.

“You’re such a hypocrite,” the Gordon Clan patriarch sneered.

“You just said you wanted to compensate my clan for your actions, yet you’re hesitating over a few insignificant power stones? Maybe I should beat you up too while I’m at it,” George growled, cracking his knuckles as his intimidating aura flared.

The Lanzt patriarch swallowed hard, a lump rising in his throat at the Gordon patriarch’s thuggish display. He wanted to chastise the old man for acting so brutishly, especially in front of the younger generation, but that thought vanished as quickly as it came.

As saying the wrong thing now might only provoke the Gordons Clan patriarch further.

“K-k-k-ill...” the patriarch’s golem rumbled, its blood-red eyes flashing ominously.

The Lanzt family members flinched in unison, the fact that the golem could speak only deepened their unease.

“You can take the power stones. With that, my debts to your clan are settled,” the Lanzt patriarch said, voice tight with reluctant submission.

“Shameless, aren’t you? You dare claim my boys’ efforts as your own?” George snapped, his white mustache twitching with rage.

He glared, frustration written plainly across his face.

“Trying to rob my grandson of his credit, are you?”

“But the power stones are essential for our younger generation,” the Lanzt patriarch retorted, his own frustration bubbling to the surface.

“Careful how you speak to me. I’m taking the power stones. And I expect a compensation gift delivered to our compound by tomorrow. Fail to send it, and I’ll come collect it myself,” George warned, his grin turning dark and bandit-like.

“Alec, are you sure you’re not just a younger version of the patriarch? Your expressions are starting to match too well,” Arthur muttered beside Alec.

“Do you want another knock on your head?” Alec’s sharp reply made Arthur step back quickly.

“You’re both bullies,” Arthur mumbled with a pout.

“What are these power stones you keep talking about, Gramps?” Alec asked, curiosity finally getting the better of him.

“Oh, they’re the cores formed inside creatures from the other dimension once they reach Tier 1. So technically, every creature from Tier 1 to Tier 9 has a power stone inside them,” George explained, offering a brief but enlightening lesson for Alec and the rest of the younger Gordon members.

The Lanzt patriarch stood in silence, watching the interaction with a mixture of resentment and defeat, it was painfully clear, George had never taken him seriously, and continuing the argument was pointless, he knew continuing the argument wouldn’t change anything, his only option now was to retreat.

“I’ll be taking my leave,” the Lanzt patriarch said stiffly, turning away.

With a flick of his hand, he summoned a gust of wind that lifted himself and the rest of the Lanzt family into the air, as they swiftly disappeared, fleeing the scene to avoid further humiliation.

“What a shameless and spineless man, runs off the moment things don’t go his way.” Alec’s grandfather scoffed.

He turned toward Alec and the others.

“Anyway, enough about him. Let’s claim our spoils of war.”

“That was so cool, Patriarch!” Arthur burst out, practically vibrating with excitement.

His admiration was obvious, and the rest of the younger Gordon members nodded, echoing his sentiment. The patriarch laughed heartily, pleased by their reactions.

Despite the c*****e around them, the air had grown oddly peaceful, almost as if no battle had taken place, corpses of Tier 1 zombies were scattered across the field, yet the atmosphere was calm.

The patriarch raised his hand and unleashed a transparent wave of energy that washed over the battlefield, until it sank into the bodies of the fallen zombies, including the (Peak) Tier 1 one.

Moments later, eight sky-blue gems floated into the air, power stones—each shimmering with varying intensity.

He caught them effortlessly, then casually tossed the brightest one to Alec, it radiated intense mana fluctuations, the power stone from the (Peak) Tier 1 zombie.

Alec immediately received a system prompt:

[Power Stone Detected]

[Do you want to consume the power stone for 200 EXP? (Y/N)]

He chose to ignore it for now. Revealing his system’s capabilities in front of everyone wasn’t an option, he quietly planned to evolve his remaining golems later, keeping them as hidden trump cards.

They’d all passed the evolution threshold, having slaughtered over a hundred zombies each.

Alec had been spending his mana repairing their bodies, unwilling to lose a single one of them, as they were his elite force.

But as the patriarch laid eyes on Legion, his expression froze, his jaw dropped, and his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

“How the f**k did you create an elite golem?! You’re just a Tier 1 mage!” he shouted, disbelief written all over his face.

“It was actually kind of simple,” Alec replied, scratching the back of his head innocently.

The patriarch stared at him, eyes full of heartbreak, feeling as though his soul had shattered into a thousand pieces by Alec’s statement.

“I guess I made the right choice in steering you toward the Golem Path. You’re incredibly talented, Alec. I wouldn’t be surprised if you surpass me someday,” the patriarch said, his voice laced with rare sincerity.

“Ohhh!” the other kids gasped, stunned by the unexpected praise.

The patriarch wasn’t one to hand out compliments lightly, not even to his own grandson.

Before Alec could respond, the patriarch continued.

“Oh, and don’t worry—we’ve already harvested the Tier 1 zombies from the North Gate, their power stones will be stored in the clan treasury. Anyone below the (Peak) Tier 1 realm can redeem them with enough merit points,” he added with a suspiciously innocent smile.

“Bullshit!” Alec blurted out.

“Those were my kills! I risked my neck out there, why does this feel like daylight robbery?”

“You’ll get your fair share of power stones as a reward, but the rest go to the clan. It’s important to learn not to be selfish.” The patriarch said with a wave of his hand.

Alec stared at him, half amused, half resigned, his grandfather’s ability to hoard valuable resources never ceased to amaze him.

“Those stones must really be worth something. No wonder that shameless Lanzt patriarch nearly fought you for them. You old man, you’re sharper than you let on,” Alec said with a grin.

“Of course I am. You think you got your shrewdness from nowhere?” the patriarch gave a satisfied chuckle, then straightened up.

“Alright, enough chatting. Let’s return to the clan. The city lord’s forces will handle the r

est of the clean-up, and everyone at the clan is eager to welcome the heroes of the clan back