Chapter 819: Borrowing Thirty Million Magic Stones!

The magical carriage drove away directly.

The several first-class wizard apprentices, seeing the magical carriage Locke was riding completely ignore them and simply leave, all grew frantic. Their pupils contracted sharply. They were under a severe curse, and they knew their only chance of survival lay with Locke in that magical carriage.

They were all wizard apprentices, and in this remote wilderness of a mundane nation, they had no access to any already-processed magical resources. As first-class wizard apprentices, they naturally had little ability to process the magical resources that were still raw materials.

Or rather, their processing efficiency was pitiably low.

Their only chance was to appeal to the formal wizard who happened to be passing through this mundane nation in that carriage.

Though they did not know what level or identity the formal wizard inside the carriage was.

The five first-class wizard apprentices chased after the magical carriage in terror.

"Great Wizard, we beg you to save us. We are students of Arnos Academy, a higher institution under Small Breath Mountain. We were attacked by black wizards and are under a black wizard's curse. We..."

In the next instant, all five suddenly froze. Their shadows fell on the ground, and from those shadows, one skeleton undead creature after another crawled out.

The skeletal undead exhaled a breath of necrotic energy, and all five first-class wizard apprentices stiffened where they stood, their pupils' vitality rapidly fading. Then the five skeletons walked toward them.

A moment later, the skeletal undead seemed to put on clothing, transforming into five low-ranking liches wearing wizard robes. The white wizard robes on the five persons also turned black in rapid succession.

The five liches wandered in place for a while, then drifted toward the nearest major city in this mundane nation.

Not far away, inside the magical carriage, Locke sensed the magic pressure of those five low-ranking lich servants slowly departing and immediately let out a cold laugh.

"They are still trying to lure me in at this point?"

"Who is behind this? The Rose Council? No, I had only just left the Rose Council. If something happened right afterward, it would be too obvious. And Witch Lana did not warn me."

"Who else could it be?"

"Or perhaps this is not aimed at me at all, but is a sweep targeting every wizard who approaches this area? This location is the first of the Cloud Marsh Wetlands' ten major regions, Cloud Marsh Region One. There are no top-tier wizard universities here, only mid-sized wizard academies."

"Either way, I am not easily alarmed. Going straight back to Golden Crown Mountain is the right move no matter what."

Locke said to the vapor-phase wizard driving the carriage, "Go directly to Golden Crown Mountain. No matter what happens, do not stop."

The vapor-phase wizard said cautiously, "Yes, my lord."

Locke sat in the carriage and began reading the documents in his hand.

"The wizard world is still very dangerous and mysterious."

A little while later, the vapor-phase wizard driving the magical carriage saw that the post road ahead had a large group of refugees on it. These refugees seemed to bear signs of plague. They were wailing on the road, and seeing an elaborately decorated magical carriage, their eyes lit up and they gradually approached it.

"Help us. A plague has broken out in the city ahead."

"Please, great one inside the carriage, help us. We beg you."

But the magical carriage did not stop at all. The hell war horse rose into the air, and the entire magical carriage drove through the sky without the slightest hesitation.

Since there were always obstructions on the ground, the vapor-phase wizard simply recited a spell, used a soul covenant to control the hell war horse, and had the carriage take flight, leaving from the air.

Not far away in a forest, two high-ranking liches whispered to one another.

"After all that effort, a Second Circle wizard happened to pass through this mundane nation, and yet we could not fool him at all. He is a Second Circle wizard after all. If it were a First Circle wizard, a simple ambush on the road would do, but for a Second Circle wizard, unless we lure him into a magical formation, we have no guarantee of victory. What a pity. Three separate attempts at luring him in, and he never fell for a single one."

"Should we try again? I do not believe he would be completely indifferent, or have absolutely no interest in the mysterious plague appearing in this mundane nation. Should we try once more?"

"Forget it. He traveled the ground route and did not stop for anything. If we try to intercept him in the air, it will only make him more alert. I looked at his spiritual presence. He is not one of the target individuals. There is nothing wrong with letting him go. He was only an extra opportunity, one that could only have been a snack at most."

"Ha ha. We need to seize the opportunity that comes from the Star Domain Sea having raised the magical tide of fifty-three wizard territories all at once. Ha ha ha ha..."

...

The magical carriage had just left the mundane nation in Cloud Marsh Region One when Locke lifted the curtain and looked back at the ground behind them.

"It seems it was not aimed at me."

"I must have accidentally stumbled into a trap set for some wizard or for some purpose. The wizard world is quite dangerous indeed. I have been staying within the seven top wizard universities for so long that I thought this society was orderly and law-abiding."

"I imagine that even in those mid-tier and small wizard universities, things would not be so orderly and law-abiding."

Locke said, "Although I handle situations as they come, there is no need to be foolish enough to walk straight into someone else's trap."

"Sigh. I had thought they would come after me so I could turn the tables. I have been short on money lately, and I was hoping some unlawful wizards would donate some funds to me."

"What a pity that those trap-setters also had decent composure and did not come chasing after me."

Locke opened the water hyacinth system and marked this location on the built-in map function. The next time he passed through here, he could take a detour around it.

"But it is strange. The death mages who had gone quiet in the Cloud Marsh Wetlands have become quite active in the wizard world recently."

Locke opened the water hyacinth system and saw that a wizard from the Small Breath Cup events committee had already added him as a friend.

This star ring wizard sent him a message directly. "Wizard Augustine, I am a staff member of the Small Breath Cup events committee. You may call me Saylor."

"I have already communicated with your senior. After discussion by our events committee, we believe that the project you have on hand concerning the directional atavistic evolution of two varieties of foxtail grass has tremendous potential. Therefore, we are willing to provide five million magic stones to sponsor you in completing this research and entering it in the Small Breath Cup hosted by Small Breath Mountain. How does that sound?"

"If you have no objections, we can sign a contract."

Locke looked over the contract the other side had sent, confirmed there was nothing problematic, and replied, "Of course. Let us sign the contract."

After all, he was always going to need to submit to some competition. It did not matter which one.

Wizard Saylor seemed to be in good spirits. "Very well. I will send you a contract, and you simply need to sign your name. Since this is lateral funding, we can directly transfer one million magic stones into your account. For the rest, you can apply to me as you need it."

Wizard Saylor said, "The money is a small matter. The only requirement is that the final project you complete be of sufficiently high quality."

Inside the magical carriage, Locke read Wizard Saylor's words and fell into thought.

"It looks like Small Breath Mountain is in urgent need of a high-quality championship project to help elevate the Small Breath Cup's prestige."

"This is the first time I have ever seen someone transfer funds this readily."

"They can even pay it directly to me without going through a financial reimbursement process."

Were they really this eager for excellent projects to enter?

Locke replied to Wizard Saylor, "Very well, Lord Saylor."

Locke thought, "After I return this time, I can complete this project first."

"Beyond that, there is also the Golden Cup's Flying Magical Plant Competition."

Locke read carefully through the specific requirements of the competition.

This Flying Magical Plant Competition's main form of presentation was a sporting event. Second Circle breeders hired athletes to actively participate, and the maximum magical level of participants was capped at ordinary First Circle wizards.

They would pilot Second Circle magical plants along the track prepared by the Twilight Border events committee, and whoever reached the final endpoint fastest would have their magical plant declared the champion.

The reason the flying wizards' magical level was limited was obviously to reduce the influence of the user's own ability on the magical plant's performance.

Although ordinary First Circle wizards were entirely unable to use Second Circle magical plants, this problem could be solved as long as a Second Circle wizard applied Second Circle botanical magic to the Second Circle magical plant in advance.

And ordinary First Circle wizards had a gap in their operational abilities that was insufficient to affect the Second Circle magical plant's performance, meaning the competition would primarily be a measure of the Second Circle flying magical plant's fundamental quality.

Locke opened the information package in the water hyacinth system, and an orange-red sky track appeared before him.

"Hmm? It is the Celestial Illusion Realm. The competition track is inside the ancient Celestial Illusion Realm."

Locke recognized it at a glance as the special plane he had nearly signed a contract with during his crystallization stage.

"The track is essentially all straight sections, with only a few curved parts. This means the competition results will be determined almost entirely by the magical plant traits of the flying magical plant."

A look of deep thought appeared on Locke's face.

"The participants in this competition are restricted to ordinary Second Circle wizard level, meaning my rivals are only those ordinary Second Circle wizards. The competition senior recommended to me does indeed suit my current needs very well."

"Only it means I am likely to encounter some old rivals in this competition."

The same principle still held.

The Second Circle wizards of the Cloud Marsh Wetlands all needed resources badly.

He estimated that even the Second Circle researchers of Golden Crown Mountain's advanced Origin Academy might participate, along with Second Circle wizards from the Rose Witch's lineage, who would also very likely have participants.

Locke thought, "Actually, I might not necessarily be unable to take a shortcut in this competition. The ancient Celestial Illusion Realm... if I could enter it, use the Lunar Cultivation Method, and let my flying magical plant undergo surge evolution, it could gain an adaptive evolution suited to the ancient Celestial Illusion Realm."

"Beyond that, the ancient Celestial Illusion Realm is very welcoming of flying species and has a very fondness for true dragon bloodlines and the great dragon race. The defining characteristic of that plane is that the dragon race is uniquely favored within it. My Magical Dragon Rose, if it were there, should be able to stand out."

"The probability of my winning this competition is not small."

Locke took out the Magical Dragon Rose and the Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow on the carriage.

"The Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow has adapted to my spiritual energy and magic, adapting to my traits and combat style, while the Magical Dragon Rose shares the same roots as my dragon bloodline."

"If I can combine the power of both and develop a new magical plant, that would also be of great benefit to me personally."

"I have no immediate ideas. Wait."

Locke began to think.

"The Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow was formed through mimicry of a great dragon. I could use the Moon of Evolution to elevate it to a Second Circle magical plant. Then use the Synthesis Cube and Flowers Bloom and Fall to elevate it once more."

"But before that, if I were to do proper breeding first, I could look up some documents related to Winged Fruits."

The so-called Winged Fruit was a type of special fruit in botanical studies. Its core characteristic was that the outer skin extended outward, transforming into thin flat surfaces or wing-like structures, allowing the fruit to travel across seas and spread between different islands.

Particularly powerful Winged Fruits could even move between different worlds, or even pass through the void.

Winged Fruits were not a important concept at the First Circle stage, but at the Second Circle stage they were very important, because they were the entry point for researching Second Circle flying magical plants, as well as one of the explanations for why the same species of magical plants and magical creatures could appear across different planes in the void.

Once a Winged Fruit matured, in order to spread the fruit to a region more favorable for growth, or because the local environment could no longer sustain the growth of the same magical plant species, it would leave this world and travel to other worlds.

And in this process, it might very likely take a large number of local magical creatures and plants with it.

One hypothesis held that Winged Fruits liked to help local magical flora and fauna travel to other worlds in order to ensure that the local ecology of the new world they were heading to would still resemble the original world.

This would ensure that the seeds within the Winged Fruit could take root and sprout normally upon arrival.

In any case, the Winged Fruit system of magical plants had indeed enabled exchange between the various planes in the void, and so researching Second Circle flying magical plants required studying Winged Fruits.

In essence, the Magical Dragon Rose Locke used was out of category. It was not a flying magical plant at all, but a Second Circle magical plant with a certain degree of flying ability.

Because the Magical Dragon Rose had no Winged Fruit system.

Locke sat in the carriage and thought, "If I were to graft a small piece of leaf from the Magical Dragon Rose onto the Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow, and then cause the Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow to undergo atavistic evolution, would that not activate the dragon bloodline genetic element hidden within the Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow and Magical Dragon Rose?"

"This would also be of great personal benefit to me."

The dragon bloodline had always been full of mystery.

Using this method, the mystery of this bloodline could be further explored.

By the same principle, he could even use the same method to reproduce the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat bloodline genetic element in a magical plant.

"Fortune favors the bold."

Locke thought, "If only the Rose Throne could use magic on me one more time, extracting the bloodline from one of my incarnations and turning it into a Three-Eyed Tiger Cat flower."

"Sigh, unfortunately an opportunity like that is once-in-a-lifetime. If the Rose Throne figured it out, I really might die."

The Red Dragon Throne and the Rose Throne were already nearly at blows. If he handed himself over to be killed, how could she possibly decline?

And he did not have a second World Wonder.

Locke thought, "But using the grafting cultivation method and atavistic evolution to have the Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow gain the dragon bloodline characteristic is possible."

"Similarly, if I mapped the dragon bloodline genetic element onto a magical plant, I could then use the Queen's Chessboard and various magical mirrors in reverse to sequence out its bloodline factors. If luck favors me, I might even reverse-sequence out an entire set of all the bloodline factors within the dragon bloodline genetic element."

Locke's heart pounded at this thought.

He had previously, while mixing among various laboratories, asked bloodline-studies wizards at the Origin Academy for help and tried to sequence the dragon bloodline genetic element, but all attempts had failed.

Both the dragon bloodline genetic element and the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat bloodline genetic element had been specially encrypted, making them extremely difficult to sequence.

This was also why the bloodline genetic elements of high-level bloodline-studies magical creatures were difficult to analyze.

But as long as they could be analyzed, he could find people to help him perfect and shape the bloodline. The number of methods available would truly be enormous.

A keen light shone in Locke's eyes.

"Setting aside the dragon bloodline for now, the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat bloodline has already become my foundation. If this could lead to the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat bloodline advancing further, even without breaking through to the Third Circle, advancing to star ring, moon ring, or sun ring level would be fine."

"Then the road ahead would not be considered broken off."

The World Tree had previously given him a hint that to advance the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat bloodline to the Third Circle, he would need to find the World Tree's fruit.

But that was the condition for breaking through from Second Circle to Third Circle.

The World Tree had not told him how the Three-Eyed Tiger Cat bloodline could evolve to the star ring level, but now he seemed to have found a thread of an idea.

Though the hope was still quite distant.

After all, he could not exactly go before the Rose Throne and ask the Throne Wizard to cooperate with him.

"So, the first thing to do is still to complete the project Teacher Sophia sent me. Once my Moon of Evolution gains atavistic evolution, I can then use the Magical Dragon Rose to reproduce the dragon bloodline genetic element in my Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow."

"A Second Circle flying magical plant like that, whatever its magical plant traits may be, would certainly be very easily favored by the ancient Celestial Illusion Realm. Winning the Golden Cup would truly be like reaching into a bag to retrieve something."

"And in the process, this would be of tremendous benefit to my Grand Magic. Rapidly grinding through projects not only gains resources but would greatly improve my academic level as well. And this is the true foundation for me as a wizard."

"I need to bring my breeding level close to that of a Second Circle breeder, or even outright reach Second Circle breeder level, through completing the Large Green Leaf Dragon Sparrow dragonification project. The same goes for potion studies, which also cannot be neglected. Starting next month I can begin learning a new Second Circle potion."

Locke was quite troubled, since learning potion studies also required a great deal of energy and resources.

When all was said and done, he was short on money right now.

Locke said, "I can look for tasks or projects related to potion studies. Even practice-level work can be tried for sale. The way I see it, for my Grand Magic to enter the star ring stage, my potion studies also likely needs to reach a certain standard."

Three days later, the magical carriage arrived at Golden Crown Mountain.

Locke's main body entered Golden Crown Mountain. After traveling for over two months, he had finally completed the Second Circle pure magical plant wizard shoes.

Locke stepped off the magical carriage, paid a fee of ten thousand magic stones, and stepped up to Golden Crown Mountain's gate.

The tree elder at the gate led the tree people in bowing to greet him.

"I have returned safe and more or less sound."

Locke relaxed. This trip outside had given him a clear picture of just how far from orderly things were beyond the mountain.

Locke noticed a wizard trying to add him as a friend on the water hyacinth system, someone from the Seven-Color Nursery. He first arranged to meet with a wizard bank manager at four o'clock that afternoon in the Blood Dragon Assembly's Witch's Kitchen Private Room One to discuss the loan. Then he accepted the friend request from the Seven-Color Nursery's Second Circle wizard.

An ordinary Second Circle wizard, who was probably a formal wizard mentor at an organization like the Seven-Color Nursery.

Very quickly, the Second Circle wizard from the Seven-Color Nursery sent a message.

"Hello, I am Gip."

The other party placed themselves in a rather humble position.

"Wizard Augustine, I saw the Second Circle wizard shoes you are selling on the water hyacinth Network, and I am very interested in them. I will not conceal anything from you. Our Seven-Color Nursery is preparing to conduct a void exploration soon, and we are very much in need of affordable wizard shoes."

Locke sent a question mark.

Gip seemed to realize there was a problem with his phrasing.

"I sincerely apologize, Wizard Augustine. I did not mean to disparage your shoes. Your shoes offer good value at a low price, and our Seven-Color Nursery is a wizard organization that cannot begin to compare with Golden Crown Mountain."

"We do not have surplus funds. I noticed that on the Arthas platform, it seems one can no longer place an order. Could you sell us ten pairs of Second Circle wizard shoes?"

Locke sent a message, "Which world are you exploring?"

Gip seemed to hesitate for a moment, but still replied, "Precisely speaking, a group of meteor planes in the void. They are called the Dolma Meteor Cluster, where a special lifeform exists called the Rainbow Slime. Rainbow Slime blood is a high-quality nutrient soil material, and the research on Rainbow Slimes is not yet very detailed. The research group I am in is currently devoting its main effort to investigating why Rainbow Slime blood, used as fertilizer, affects the leaf color of the magical plants grown with it."

"Wizard Augustine, Golden Crown Mountain and the Seven-Color Nursery share a deep friendship. Could you please allocate some quota for our Seven-Color Nursery?"

Locke frowned. He had not expected his Second Circle wizard shoes to attract so many people simply because of the low price.

It seemed wizard shoes were necessary in many situations.

It was just that previously, because of the high price and bundled sales practices, many wizard organizations and individuals had been priced out of purchasing Second Circle wizard shoes.

"Strange. Why can Solas Light Foot and Melechi Magic Step not lower their selling prices and allow wizard organizations and individuals who cannot afford wizard shoes to also purchase Second Circle wizard shoes?"

Locke fell into puzzlement.

"Never mind. This has nothing to do with me."

Locke replied to Gip, "Hello, Wizard Gip. I do indeed plan to continue increasing the sales volume of my first Second Circle wizard shoe. You do not need to worry. Around five o'clock this afternoon I can confirm how many more pairs I will be expanding production by."

"Please be patient."

Wizard Gip sent Locke a message.

"That is truly wonderful."

"Wizard Locke, the seven garden masters of our Seven-Color Nursery have very close ties with your lineage. Being able to use wizard shoes you designed gives us even greater peace of mind. We have great trust in the Second Circle wizard shoes you have designed. Then I will await your good news."

Locke understood now.

So the Seven-Color Nursery was considered part of his own lineage network.

"The interests of a lineage and a wizard university do not always completely align. The academy has its own interests, and so does the lineage. Of course, even the factions within an academy have their own interests to consider."

Locke thought.

"Just like the Three Kings Tournament and the Silent Chalice competitions from before, the three major factions within the academy each had their own interests to consider, which led to a series of events."

He first returned to his dormitory, then in the afternoon, at the agreed time, he came to the Blood Dragon Assembly, and in Private Room One found three faerie-clan wizards dressed in white wizard robes.

Two crystallization wizards, one Second Circle wizard.

The ordinary Second Circle wizard, with long fingernails on his fingers, ran a finger across the account book in his hand. Upon seeing Locke enter, he stood up from his seat, though his height was about the same as the height of the seat.

The Second Circle faerie wizard coughed once and said to the server, "Server, your chairs are far too tall here. Please bring me one that can accommodate my height."

Then the Second Circle faerie wizard looked at Locke.

"Wizard Augustine, I have reviewed your request. You want to borrow thirty million magic stones?"

"I will need you to provide the transaction records of your store alliance."

Locke handed him the materials.

"How may I address you?"

The faerie wizard looked at the transaction records, and his brow furrowed as though it could trap a fly.

"Your store alliance's transaction flow is impressive, yet not a single bit of assets has been retained."

"You have almost no savings."

Locke said, "This precisely proves that my store alliance is in rapid development."

The faerie wizard said, "But this defies common sense. The better a store alliance develops, the larger it grows, and as its transaction flow increases, its savings grow and its risk resistance improves. This transaction record makes it difficult for me to approve you for a loan of thirty million magic stones."

"Unless you are not applying for the loan in the name of the store alliance but in your own name. Or perhaps you can provide some collateral?"

Locke frowned. He caught a certain dangerous scent in this.