Wizard: Starting With Synthesized Gems - Chapter 792

Chapter 789 Overwhelmed with Projects and the Nature Guardian [Shepherd Spirit]

In the Golden Crown Mountain Library area, Locke, Alex, and Wizard Jugglus left the second-ring area.

Alex and Wizard Jugglus hadn’t published any second-ring journals or written any well-known second-ring magic books, so they didn’t have many second-ring contribution points.

The three of them wandered around the free area.

Before leaving, Locke asked Wizard Jugglus, “Alex said earlier that Wizard Jugglus’s application for this year’s special grant didn’t pass, and that a judge said it was related to me. But what exactly happened?”

Locke asked with a smile.

Wizard Jugglus’s face turned cold, seemingly angered by Locke; his pupils turned ice blue.

Meanwhile, the general studies second-ring wizard, Old Blue Ackerman, coughed secretly. He hesitated, wanting to say something, after all, as a general studies wizard, he actually knew very well what these second-ring wizards were researching.

But after thinking for a moment, he remained silent.

Wizard Alex broke the icy atmosphere. “Wizard Augustine, Wizard Jugglus, like you, is quite obsessed with evolution. You were both sent to the Dune Plane by your teacher.”

Wizard Alex’s words reminded Locke.

Locke looked at Wizard Jugglus and said, “So, it’s related to the accelerated evolution of plants?”

He was startled. He channeled his magic into the astral ring on his right index finger, connecting with the Ganoderma lucidum plant. He quickly and secretly accessed Wizard Jugglus’s published articles.

Recently, he had studied the Water Hyacinth system interface extensively and discovered that within this system, he could access many wizards’ articles and view their representative works.

Although some paid articles required purchase to read, at least he could see the title, abstract, and introduction.

Locke searched for Wizard Jugglus’s name and wizarding academy and found that he had published in many first-ring journals, but only three second-ring journals so far, and the journals in which these three articles were published didn’t seem very good.

None of them were in the first quartile.

It seemed that publishing in second-ring journals was indeed quite difficult.

Locke also confirmed that none of the articles published by the Wizard Jugglus Juggler had mentioned the special phenomenon of the Dune Plane.

‘Yes, without the Zero Elixir, even if the phenomenon were discovered, it wouldn’t be applicable, nor could it be amplified to gather crucial evidence.’

‘Furthermore, I was able to completely pinpoint the special Stone Spirit’s spirituality because the Zero Elixir amplified its evolution. Without its amplifying effect, I might have struggled to analyze the Stone Spirit’s true function.’

Locke pondered.

‘My teacher had provided implicit assistance in my participation in the Silent Grail War, perhaps a reluctant act under an agreement.’ ‘

But she guided me to discover the special Stone Spirit of the Dune Plane. It’s just that my teacher has many disciples and followers; we use similar materials, equipment, and have the same mentors, receiving similar training methods.’ ‘

Therefore, under these circumstances, it’s perfectly normal for the Wizard Jugglus Juggler to discover the evolution of the special magical plants of the Dune Plane, just like me. But he may not be certain that that rapid evolution originated from the Stone Spirit.’ At this

moment, Locke was getting anxious.

He wanted to try publishing a paper in a second-tier journal using this rapid evolution technique.

Unexpectedly, he had already encountered a competitor.

When Jugglus Juggler heard Locke mention rapid plant evolution, his expression subtly changed; his icy demeanor finally softened, as if ice had melted in the sunlight.

“Indeed, your inspiration for [Surging Evolution] also comes from the Dune Plane,”

Jugglus Juggler scoffed.

“In the first half of the year, Zhalan Bailey confidently claimed that all of Group 2’s resources were in his hands, and that Group Leader Sith was fully supportive of him.”

“Now it seems he was just boasting,”

Locke continued with a smile.

“That was Professor Ekaterina’s arrangement for me, and I gained inspiration from that arrangement,”

Jugglus Juggler said, his face still icy.

“Same, same. Only mine might be better.”

“But you discovered it first and used it to complete your Great Magic.”

Locke remained noncommittal, knowing the other was just being stubborn; he probably wanted to use the accelerated evolution of magical plants from the Dune Plane to apply for special funding.

The judges felt his work lacked originality, deeming it insufficient as he had already demonstrated something similar.

Locke, however, mentally calculated the other party’s experimental progress and realized that even without him, they likely wouldn’t have secured the grant.

Locke noticed something else: most of the articles published by Wizard Jugglus during his first-ring period were related to elemental evolution.

And all three articles in second-ring journals were also related to elemental evolution.

One of them, published in the third-ring journal “Elements and Plants,” mentioned that plants could absorb elemental pollution from a region, leading to an exponential increase in the mutation ability of magical plants.

The reason it could only be published in the third-ring journal and not the second seemed to be due to insufficient evidence.

Locke looked at Wizard Jugglus and asked, “Wizard Jugglus, you’re very good at dealing with elemental pollution? Hmm… you seem to have a deep understanding of elemental evolution; I’d like to discuss this with you.”

“I have a Pinellia ternata plant, and…”

Wizard Jugglus snorted coldly.

“The second element, the Tyrant Element.”

“I know. But I’m not interested, because it has nothing to do with elemental evolution. Your research on evolution is still too rudimentary.”

Locke maintained his smile.

The troll wizard Ackerman, standing to the side, looked on with great curiosity.

‘Strange, from my interactions with Locke, I’ve found that he’s known outside as the Eye Demon Wizard, ruthless and even more ferocious than a dark wizard, and that’s certainly true. Why is he being so polite to this Jugglus Juggler today?’

Ackerman wondered.

‘This isn’t Locke’s style.’

‘Has Locke changed his ways today? Or is he plotting something?’

Locke smiled, seemingly very satisfied with Jugglus Juggler’s answer.

“I wonder what special views Jugglus Juggler has on elemental evolution?”

Jugglus Juggler seemed still worried about his experiments in the laboratory, so he said, “I’m very busy. Moreover, elemental evolution is different from the convergent evolution inherent in Half-Summer.”

“I… have no interest in saying more to you. It’s pointless to waste words on someone with whom you don’t see eye to eye.”

“Alex, let’s go.”

Alex nodded to Locke, expressing his goodwill. After their brief exchange, he had a good impression of Locke.

…

In the Forbidden Forest, the King of the Forbidden Forest turned and walked back into the jungle.

Locke looked at the King of the Forbidden Forest; he was like a high mountain, or a dark cloud. Wherever he appeared, he exuded pressure. Many wizards had mistakenly believed him to be the Grim Reaper. Just as the King

of the Forbidden Forest turned, something beneath his robes seemed restless. In an instant, his black robes fluttered as if in a strong wind, and something like putty tried to crawl out from under his robes. It was like a slime monster, a distorted face appearing in his sleeve.

The face roared, looking at Locke, as if trying to say something.

The next moment, the World Tree leaf that Locke had placed in his Astral Ring automatically detached from the ring and flew towards him like a dart, piercing him. The face formed by the slime shrank like a deflated balloon.

It returned to the Forbidden Forest King’s sleeve.

Locke, meanwhile, retrieved his own World Tree leaf. He frowned; his greatest foundation—the World Tree leaf—had been activated by an evil aura emanating from the Forbidden Forest King and had automatically attacked that evil entity.

So this is what the Forbidden Forest King looks like…

This is the being hidden within the Forbidden Forest, a grim reaper to wizards…

But what was that thing struggling to escape from his sleeve?

Why did it cause such a violent reaction from his World Tree?

Locke looked thoughtful.

Since this World Tree leaf was related to his profound magical depth, for his own safety, he should continue exploring the ancient creature—the World Tree—the guardian of nature.

The Forbidden Forest King turned and looked at Locke in astonishment.

“A World Tree Leaf. As expected of ferocious beasts. Every Guardian of Nature possesses a unique World Tree Leaf.”

“Thank you. Your World Tree Leaf, combined with mine, is just right to suppress them.”

“The magical tides have been rising recently.”

“Turbulent times.”

“Every time there’s a major change in the outside world, various upheavals occur in the Forbidden Forest.”

Locke was astonished. Could it be that the King of the Forbidden Forest was also a Guardian of Nature?

He also possessed a World Tree Leaf?

Then, what lineage did the Forbidden Forest

belong to? What exactly was the Forbidden Forest?

Locke suddenly realized that although he was now a second-ring wizard, he understood the Southeast Corner Region even less.

Wizards merely resided in the Southeast Corner Region, but the Southeast Corner Region concealed far greater secrets.

Locke chased after him.

“Wait a minute, King of the Forbidden Forest, if you are also a Guardian of Nature, what are your duties? Are you also a ferocious beast? Can you tell me, what exactly are the duties of the Forbidden Forest?”

He had previously guessed that the Forbidden Forest might be a vast, immense magic, perhaps even a fully forged immense magic like that of a third-ring wizard.

But now it seemed that this view was also wrong.

It was a thought produced by a low-ring mindset.

Locke was about to give chase, but the King of the Forbidden Forest vanished from his sight in the next instant, reappearing in the jungle fifty meters away.

With each step he took, it was as if he were teleporting, appearing in even more distant places.

‘Spatial travel?’

A tiger’s eye appeared on Locke’s forehead.

The King of the Forbidden Forest and the Silent Bee both glanced at the tiger’s eye on his forehead.

‘No. That’s not the spatial manipulation of the magic school; it’s a kind of natural magic.’

Locke realized.

‘The King of the Forbidden Forest doesn’t seem to be a wizard.’

‘Hmm? What is this?’

Locke’s eyes widened as he saw the strangest thing he had ever seen in his life.

The King of the Forbidden Forest, an individual at least at the third ring level, didn’t possess various magical powers, but rather dozens of… Root Realms.

‘These aren’t his Root Realms; they seem to belong to others, all appearing on his body. There are also some special things resembling Root Realms. Could it be that the King of the Forbidden Forest’s entire body is imprisoning various monsters?’

‘Then he’s definitely not a Type I Guardian. He must be some other type of Guardian!’ ‘

The Silent Bee stepped in front of Locke, this playful fairy flitting about.

“Hello, ferocious beast. I am a fairy serving the Guardians of Nature. In the distant past, we fairies were all under your command. But now, our fairy race is nearly extinct.”

“The Fairy King, responsible for creating fairies, disappeared long ago for some unknown reason.”

“Currently, fairies only exist deep within the Forbidden Forest.”

Locke looked at the unusual dark green bee with surprise.

“A magically intelligent creature native to the wizarding world, possessing a unique appearance and shrouded in special power?”

“A new race?”

The Silent Bee was speechless. “I’m not a magical creature, I’m a fairy. Ah, in this era, the number of wizards who have seen us is probably less than ten.”

“Only the Guardians of Nature can command us.”

“We are the guides of the forest, the words spoken by nature itself. Those few words became the spirits of all things—that is us—the fairy race. I am the Silent Bee.”

Silent Bee flew behind Locke, flying backwards, its wings and striped rear end nudging Locke’s back.

“Don’t worry about the King of the Forbidden Forest. He’s broken, and their Type III Guardians of Nature are [Shepherds]. They are thoughtful, quiet, and have different personalities. Like our King of the Forbidden Forest, his heart is like our Forbidden Forest itself. No one can fathom the Forbidden Forest’s temperament.”

“As for the Forbidden Forest… well, you’re a ferocious beast, and I’m not a fairy specifically serving you, so I can’t tell you the true purpose of the Forbidden Forest.”

Silent Bee sighed. “The King of the Forbidden Forest says that many guardians of nature are also traitors.”

“The King of the Forbidden Forest isn’t in good shape either; he’s gone astray. There’s nothing we can do; we’ve lost contact with the World Tree for a long time. It hasn’t been restored yet.”

Locke pondered for a moment, because he had a connection with the World

Tree. But he quickly realized that his connection was achieved through various meditation techniques within the wizarding system.

This was the core system of wizarding civilization.

This was something the Forbidden Forest had never encountered.

Therefore, they might truly be unable to reconnect with the World Tree.

The Silent Bee Fairy fluttered before Locke. “Look, every blade of grass and every tree in this forest is a living being. Everything here welcomes you.”

“Of course, you can’t harm the ferocious beasts. Otherwise, everyone will still be angry.”

“And even angrier.”

The Silent Bee Fairy said, “The King of the Forbidden Forest is still very troubled.”

“After that wizard entered the Forbidden Forest, he spread a special energy everywhere, causing mutations in the plants of our Forbidden Forest. The King of the Forbidden Forest is still thinking about how to deal with it.”

Locke fell into thought.

Clearly, the Pale Pilgrimage’s target was something within the Forbidden Forest, and the Rose Council, his teacher’s adversary, also targeted this place.

Because of his status as a Nature Guardian, he seemed to be considered half-one of the Forbidden Forest’s inhabitants, or at least a guest.

‘Perhaps I should first communicate with this creature who calls himself a fairy and learn about the Forbidden Forest he speaks of,’

Locke made the judgment that best suited his interests.

Locke looked at the Silent Bee. “What kind of energy pollution is this? Perhaps I have a way.”

The Silent Bee, remembering that Locke was also a wizard, became excited and led him through the Forbidden Forest. “Ferocious Beast, I’ll take you to see it.”

“In the distant past, ferocious beasts were the most powerful among our Guardians. Perhaps you really do have a way.”

Locke followed the Silent Bee through the jungle and saw that in one part of the Forbidden Forest, the land had turned white soil, and large swaths of plants had become albino demonic plants.

These albino demonic plants seemed to be a special plague, and it was very likely a plant plague created by the Pale Pilgrimage specifically for the Forbidden Forest.

“This soil possesses very powerful death magic.”

A cautious glint flashed in Locke’s eyes, and he wisely refrained from approaching. Seeing Locke’s reluctance, the Silent Bee also stayed away.

“How is it? How is it?” The Silent Bee fluttered up and down in front of Locke.

It flew very fast.

Locke said, “From what I’ve seen so far, it seems that the soil was first contaminated with necromantic magic, and then the mechanism between plants and soil was used to cause the magical plants to be invaded by necromantic magic, seemingly creating some kind of special evolutionary path towards the undead. I must say, this is the first time I’ve seen something like this.”

The Silent Bee looked at Locke nervously and asked, “What can we do? Is there a way to resolve this quickly?”

“Many species within the Forbidden Forest have been affected. If this continues, many species will disappear.”

Thinking of this, the kind-hearted Silent Bee almost cried.

Locke knew why.

Because the Forbidden Forest was different from other forests; it was a place where all magical plants were highly mutated.

The magical plants here were highly mutated, and the magical creatures were even more so. The extinction of one type of magical plant could often wipe out a large number of magical plants and magical creatures.

The Forbidden Forest was incredibly powerful, but also incredibly fragile.

Locke pondered, “This is a type of elemental evolution, and I have no background in it. Besides, I’ve got a ton of things to do lately. I simply don’t have time for this.”

He felt a pang of frustration.

Indeed, his most important tasks were currently using the agreement he’d reached with Hussein to conduct dimensional exploration, complete the testing of the wedding ring, and devise a way to reduce the cost of the imaginary root.

Aside from these three things, nothing else was of paramount importance.

After all, it concerned the success of his two grant applications.

Locke truly had no time for anything else.

The research on the Netherworld Iron Tree alone was enough to consume all his energy.

He even began to feel that there weren’t enough capable people available.

Locke thought of something, ‘Wait, I can’t do this in the Forbidden Forest, but I can find someone to do it.’

‘Professor Catherine has so many disciples and followers, and she has many large project teams on hand. I can always find a second-circle wizard interested in this situation.’

‘Just bring them over to complete this project.’ Locke pondered, “

Anyway, it seems that only I, because of my identity as a ferocious beast, can communicate with the fairies in the Forbidden Forest. For other wizards, this place is only polluted by the special undead calamity.”

Locke looked at the Silent Bee and said, “Silent Bee, if I can solve this problem for your nature guardian, what benefits will I receive?”

Silent Bee’s eyes widened. “Benefits? Protecting nature requires a reward?”

Locke coughed, “None?”

Silent Bee pondered for a moment. “Yes. Ferocious Beast, when you were fighting outside, I saw you summon a treant. I can help you use [Fairy Enlightenment] once.”

Locke asked doubtfully, “What’s that?”

Silent Bee smiled, “It’s amazing. Fairy Enlightenment can greatly enhance a treant’s intelligence, allowing it to speak.”

Locke’s eyes brightened slightly.

Wasn’t that similar to his teacher, Dragon Peach, which could give magical creatures humanity?

Silent Bee said, “In the distant past, we fairies could enlighten talking trees. The treants of that time were different from those enlightened by you wizards. Those treants could speak, enjoy life, and had preferences; they were a true living race.”

“True living beings. I can enlighten your treant. All I have is fairy dust.”

Locke looked at Silent Bee suspiciously. Really? Unlimited uses?

No, it’s probably limited uses.

But even just having one of his treants become a [Talking Tree] would be good.

“I can use this opportunity to see what a real tree-man is like,”

Locke said to the Silent Bee. “Deal.”

The Silent Bee gaped. “You really have a way? Ferocious beast!”

…

Locke’s true form looked at the wizard Jugglus Juggler and said to him, who was about to reach the door, “Wait, wizard Jugglus Juggler. I have something for you to see.”

The wizard Jugglus Juggler turned around impatiently.

He was immediately stunned.

Locke used History Replay to capture the scene of that part of the land.

After seeing this scene, the wizard Jugglus Juggler’s eyes lit up. “This is a rather special evolution of death elemental magical plants… cough cough cough…”

Locke smiled and said, “I wonder if this will attract wizard Jugglus Juggler to discuss it in detail.”

The wizard Jugglus Juggler’s mouth watered at the sight.

For a wizard, discovering an unknown phenomenon or an unknown form of damage means a huge discovery, a big prize, an article, a project, a title.

The wizard Jugglus Juggler showed a hint of surprise.

“Such a precious phenomenon, and you’re willing to give it to me?”

Locke said, “I’m too busy, too busy to research it all. And I don’t have any promising students. Wizard Jugglus, are you interested? I’ve read your articles; you seem to be an expert in elemental evolution.”

“I want to collaborate with you.”

The aloofness in Wizard Jugglus’s eyes completely vanished, replaced by an intense gaze,

as if he were looking at his benefactor.

Wizard Jugglus smiled. “How could you not be able to research it all? Locke, you seem particularly good at finding projects and research targets.”

Alex blinked.

Senior, you change your tune so quickly.

Wizard Jugglus sighed.

“Now that I think about it, I believe my application this year failed entirely because of my own lack of ability. It has nothing to do with you, Locke. I shouldn’t have taken my anger out on you. I’m truly ashamed.” “

Locke, we are both students of the teacher; we should collaborate, not be enemies.”

“After all, we have a common enemy—the students of the Rose Throne.”

Wizard Jugglus’s eyes cleared.

(End of this chapter)