Wizard: Starting With Synthesized Gems - Chapter 800

Chapter 797 The Feast at Lilith’s Cottage and the Witch Rose’s Decision

In the data storage room of the Melochy Shop Alliance headquarters, Rose the Witch asked a staff member for Melochy’s wizard shoe design data from the past thirty years. She then put on a monocle, sat down, and began reading.

The wizards in the data storage department whispered among themselves.

“Where did this second-circle wizard come from? Have you found out her background? If she has a powerful background, wouldn’t currying favor with her be like climbing a ladder to heaven?!” “

We can’t find out. Her surname is Tustin, which seems to be a very common surname. None of our leaders have that surname. She probably doesn’t have a very strong background, but being able to curry favor with an ordinary second-circle wizard is already quite good for us.” “

A second-circle wizard without a background… no wonder she was transferred to such a leisurely and unprofitable place as the archives. In this situation, even if we curry favor with her, we won’t get any benefits. At most, our treatment in the archives will be slightly better and more relaxed.”

The witch Rose, who was reading the documents, looked at Melochie with disdain. She shook her head slightly as she flipped through the documents from the past thirty years.

She looked up at the three gasification wizards whispering nearby, ignoring their conversation, and coldly said, “Give me design data from the last hundred years, design data from the last fifty years, and design data from the last hundred years. Divide them into three categories. I want data on first-ring and second-ring wizard shoes.”

The three first-ring gasification wizards quickly agreed and turned to work diligently.

Whether they wanted to join this seemingly unremarkable, unconnected second-ring wizard or not, they still had to do the work assigned by their leader. “

Lying down” meant at least completing their assigned tasks properly, without striving for advancement in extra work.

It didn’t mean completely giving up.

In a shop alliance like Melochy, giving up meant immediate dismissal.

The witch Rose coldly glanced at the three and shook her head slightly.

“I never imagined Uncle Melochy’s shop alliance would be this bad. It’s hard to believe that this was the same alliance that successfully broke through the commercial blockade of large-scale integrated shop alliances a hundred years ago and became a rising force in wizard shoe shops.”

“Grandma sent me down to each department to take a look and put things into practice, which is indeed very meaningful. The production, education, and research of wizard shoes is Grandma’s private domain. The education and research part is fine, but the production part seems to have a problem.”

“Where exactly is the problem?”

Witch Rose took out the Ganoderma lucidum plant and glanced at the recent sales ranking of Locke’s black hummingbird wizard shoes.

“Number one this month? That’s so-so, interesting. He’s a competitor.”

Witch Rose thought, “But I don’t have time to deal with him for now.”

Witch Rose’s style is that she won’t rush into action until she understands where the problem lies.

As the Rose Witch’s representative in the wizard shoe field, she is acting very cautiously at this moment.

“The key isn’t any competitors, but ourselves,”

Witch Rose pondered. “After a century, how could Melochie have fallen to such a state? Why?”

“There must be a reason. I’ll go to Solas Barefoot and take another look.”

“Finding the reason is my most important task right now,”

Witch Rose thought. The wizard shoes the breeders were just dabbling in weren’t the immediate priority.

Of course, this was an attack and provocation from the Red Dragon Throne’s academic lineage, and she would definitely teach them a painful lesson to uphold the dignity of the Rose Council and the Rose Throne’s academic lineage, and to deter outsiders from challenging the Rose Council of Cloudze Wetlands.

Witch Rose pondered, “Besides, although my great-grandmother didn’t give any instructions, if I can help her deal with the impact of the new textile wizards, I will certainly gain her more attention.”

“Products should come first,”

Witch Rose coldly glanced at the several flustered vaporization wizards.

“These people are so inefficient. I think there are far too many useless people inside Melochy. Perhaps raising the bar for applicants and testing them on the prestige of the wizarding academy they came from would be better.”

…

Southeast Corner Region, Lilith’s Cottage.

Locke and Lady Irina completed an authorization on the spot. He planned to bring two of his best-selling wizard shoes to the Southeast Corner Region for sale.

The first was the Black Hummingbird Pineapple Wizard Shoes.

The second was the Demon Realm Pineapple Wizard Shoes.

Locke signed a contract with Lady Irina and pondered, “This time I avoided Arthas and cooperated with Lady Irina, so I still need my own production base. If I want to use Arthas’s production base, I must tell them that I cooperate with wizard merchants in the wizarding lands outside.”

“Arthas seems to mind this. Therefore, I can’t tell them.” “

The reason why wizard shoes aren’t popular in the Southeast Corner is simple: wizard shoes are already too expensive among all magical artifacts. A magical artifact costing 100,000 is considered high-priced at the first level, but for a pair of wizard shoes, it’s just the starting price.” “

A pair of first-level wizard shoes often costs 500,000 to 1 million magic stones, which is unimaginable for first-level wizards in the Southeast Corner.” This

is because the monthly salary of a first-level wizard in Yunze Wetland is only a few thousand more than that of a first-level wizard in the Southeast Corner.

However, in Yunze Wetland, first-level wizards have a large number of vertical and horizontal funds that they can apply for, especially since Yunze Wetland has a large number of shop alliances, which is itself a very important source of funds for first-level wizards.

The lack of a shop alliance in the Southeast Corner Region is tantamount to losing a crucial source of funding at the first-ring stage.

First-ring wizards in the Southeast Corner simply cannot afford such expensive wizard shoes.

However, Locke could easily lower the price of pure magic plant wizard shoes, since the production cost of a pair is around six thousand magic stones.

This would make the wizard shoes affordable for first-ring wizards in the Southeast Corner.

Locke said, “Wizard shoes will also be very useful for first-ring wizards, their biggest benefit being increased speed.”

Locke continued, “Lady Irina, imagine you and your enemy are both first-ring wizards. If their spell model can’t match yours, they’re at a disadvantage. But if they’re wearing wizard shoes and are twice as fast as you, you won’t be able to catch them at all. What would you do?”

Lady Irina’s expression changed slightly.

She had only been happy because Locke had said he would authorize her to sell wizard shoes in the Southeast Corner Region.

But now, hearing Locke’s example, she realized that wizard shoes were not something dispensable to wizards, but rather something very important.

Lady Irina considered for a moment and said, “A wizard with a pair of wizard shoes will gain the upper hand. Their speed will be enhanced, allowing them to choose to flee or turn back to attack at any time.”

Locke added with a smile, “It’s not just about speed; wizard shoes also improve wizards’ stamina and endurance.”

“For a first-ring wizard, a pair of wizard shoes is a huge advantage, whether exploring forbidden areas or undertaking long journeys. How can someone travel far without a good pair of shoes?”

Lady Irina sighed, “You asked me to limit the price of wizard shoes to around 50,000. When I was sourcing them, I researched the price of first-ring wizard shoes and found that most were over 100,000 magic stones, or even 500,000.”

“Great Wizard Augustine, your actions not only allow us in the Southeast Corner to buy pure magic plant wizard shoes, but also make wizard shoes affordable for first-ring wizards in our impoverished rural areas.”

“Hearing you say that, I realize how much of a loss it was for our impoverished rural areas to be unable to purchase even a pair of wizard shoes before,”

Locke nodded slightly. “A witch once told me that the new magic weaving philosophy believes truth lies in the needle and thread. I think her point is quite valid. A pair of shoes, something everyone wears, may seem like an ordinary item, but it contains the hard work of many wizards.”

“Technological advancements should naturally spread to all wizarding lands. Wizard shoes should be introduced to wizarding lands like the Southeast Corner as soon as possible, so that the wizards there can also enjoy the fruits of civilizational progress,”

Harun Vera said. “In that case, if each of our wizards had been equipped with a pair of pure magic plant wizard shoes during the previous war, we would have easily gained a strategic advantage, able to fight or retreat as we pleased.”

Locke and the others had already taken their seats.

Wood elf maids moved about the banquet, serving dishes to the wizards.

Locke pondered how he should set up a production base in the Southeast Corner.

At this stage, everything costs money, so he needs to take advantage of any available resources and save wherever possible.

A production base in the Cloud Marsh Wetlands isn’t suitable; otherwise, the transportation costs for every pair of shoes would be significant.

Renting the magic fields here and hiring staff would require sending a clone to oversee the operation, risking technology leaks and, over time, the emergence of counterfeit versions of his wizard shoes.

Most seriously, if the magic weavers from Solas and Melochy’s side seized the opportunity to directly counterfeit his wizard shoes, it would be a serious problem.

Although Lilith’s Cottage is his alma mater, there are too many unrelated wizards there.

Too many people means too much attention.

‘I don’t even have enough clones. If I had another powerful spell, I could create another clone,’

Locke pondered. ‘However, there’s another way: setting up my wizard shoe production base within the Forest Sanctuary.’

A flash of inspiration struck Locke.

Previously, he lacked the ability to modify the spell model of the Forest Sanctuary, but now that he had a cooperative fund with Lilith’s Hut for the Forest Sanctuary, he could try to set up his wizard shoe production base within the Forest Sanctuary.

‘Albert’s Forest Sanctuary forms an ecological corridor with mine. My moonlight can directly enter his forest. Using this, I can project my consciousness into his Forest Sanctuary and, using a single first-ring magical plant within it, remotely cultivate several acres of magical fields.’

Locke pondered, ‘Then I’ll leave two kinds of wizard shoe seeds in Albert’s Forest Sanctuary. Once the main body of the two kinds of wizard shoes is produced, I can use the enchanters here to have them complete the final processing of the two kinds of wizard shoes according to the blueprints.’ ‘

Anyway, sales in the southeast corner won’t be too high, so I’ll just cultivate ten acres of magical fields in the Forbidden Forest. Forget it, as a second-ring archmage, I’m too lazy to bother with such a small matter.’

Locke realized that wizard Albert was now practically his student.”

“I’ll let him handle the opening, and the relevant application procedures, etc., just require his own consent,”

Locke immediately communicated with Albert.

Albert, seated, smiled and said, “Of course. I have absolutely no objection.”

Locke said, “Thank you, Albert. As compensation, I will give you ten thousand magic stones every month. Also, as rent for requisitioning your magical sanctuary, I will give you another twenty thousand magic stones every month.”

Locke still believed that even close brothers should keep clear accounts.

Feelings are feelings, but if they aren’t maintained with mutual benefit, they will change.

Albert’s smile was almost impossible to suppress.

“Locke, why do you need to pay so much? We’re friends. Besides, it’s thanks to your help that I was able to become a formal wizard.”

But Albert didn’t refuse.

Because Locke needed to adjust the spell model of his Forest Sanctuary and take on certain responsibilities for its care, he was essentially using it to cultivate magical fields.

At the same time, Albert was increasingly aware of the limits of his abilities.

He was likely to spend the rest of his life in Lilith’s Hut.

He was different from Locke and the witch Sophia.

His achievements were limited; he didn’t seek to go far on the path of truth, but rather to make steady, small progress, which would satisfy him.

Therefore, he was very satisfied with the 30,000 magic stones Locke gave him each month.

This was a generous sum for him, enough to make the other formal wizards in Lilith’s Hut extremely envious.

Albert looked up and saw many formal wizards looking at him with envy.

They envied him for having a connection with the Great Wizard and receiving 30,000 magic stones a month; many even seemed to want the task themselves.

However, their permanent defensive field wasn’t the Forest Sanctuary, so even if they wanted it, they couldn’t ask.

Locke sat at the banquet, the protagonist of the event, and thus in control of its pace.

Harlan Vera and Headmaster Earl followed Locke’s gaze.

Locke said, “Manager Yuri, it’s been a long time.”

Yuri, the witch, stood up with a complex expression and bowed to Locke. Her current magic pressure was only 210.

This was due to the damage the Curse of Decay had inflicted on her soul, causing her to only be able to barely repair some of the soul damage she had suffered within the curse over the years.

Progress was a distant dream.

Her plan was to fully repair her soul damage within five years, then try to increase her magic power, and finally fight for a formal wizardship.

As long as she could cross that threshold, she would be different.

She would enter the level of a formal wizard.

However, Yuri hadn’t expected that Locke would return not only as a formal wizard, but also as a second-circle wizard.

Yuri looked at Locke with a complicated expression, her mind flashing back to Locke as a second-class wizard apprentice, when he first entered the Lijin Secret Language.

Who could have imagined that the wizard apprentice of that time would become a great wizard?

The witch Yuri seemed to see a legend unfold before her.

And she had become a figure in that legend.

This filled her with pride.

Yuri bowed to Locke, saying, “Lord Augustine, thank you for remembering me.”

Locke looked at Yuri and said, “Yuri, has your soul damage not fully recovered? Hmm… I helped you remove the parasitic demon from your body before, but I suppose my skills were still a bit clumsy at the time, so I couldn’t solve the problem completely in one go.”

Locke opened his right hand, and a primordial fire appeared. The next moment, he used the Reverse Refining Technique to wield the primordial fire, enveloping her.

Before Yuri could finish her astonishment, within the flames, strands of spiritual energy transformed into threads and entered her soul.

After the flames disappeared, Yuri felt completely refreshed.

That faint feeling of weakness had completely vanished.

Locke said to her, “I used a second-circle potion master’s technique to refine your soul, restoring it to its peak state. Hmm, that should save you about five years of soul repair time.”

“I also removed the residual magical toxins from your soul. This should increase your chances of becoming a full-fledged wizard.”

The witch Yuri was incredibly excited. “Thank you… Locke, have you become a second-circle potion master?”

At the banquet, the first-circle wizards all showed surprise; they hadn’t expected Locke to possess such abilities.

Is this what a second-circle potion master is?

Locke pondered for a moment. He wanted to explain that he wasn’t a second-circle potion master yet; the standard for expert potion masters was very high, and the emergence of Spiritual Enlightenment had brought potion mastery to an unprecedented level.

But he thought that even if he explained it to Yuri, she wouldn’t understand, so Locke could only nod slightly.

He didn’t say whether he was or not.

The witch Yuri bowed to Locke, knowing her status was lower and she couldn’t talk to him for too long, so she returned to her seat.

Locke glanced around and noticed that his two friends from his second-tier wizarding apprenticeship period weren’t present at the banquet, presumably because they were still second-tier apprentices.

He quickly decided not to insist on seeing them.

For him now, a simple gesture was enough to indirectly help them.

Next, many formal wizards tried to strike up a conversation with Locke, displaying their projects and magical philosophies like peacocks, hoping to attract his attention, gain his favor, or even secure funding.

After all, his current status and wealth were only average in the Cloud Marsh Wetlands, but in the Southeastern Region, he was already a tycoon.

A casual gesture from him could make many formal wizards rich.

Unfortunately, after hearing their project presentations, Locke was greatly disappointed.

The quality was too low.

Unconsciously, Locke’s standards had risen considerably.

Ordinary projects no longer piqued his interest.

Even if these wizards from the Southeast Corner wanted to recommend themselves, their skill level was quite limited. They couldn’t even offer many projects at the level of diamond succulents he had worked on in the Six Towers.

And those kinds of projects were, in his current eyes, utterly insignificant.

Whether he did them or not, it would be a slow process of improvement for him.

Talent and energy were his most lacking resources.

As a second-circle archmage, his energy was limited, so he could only invest it in areas that could yield the most significant results.

Locke spent the rest of his time mainly socializing with Harlen Vera’s formal wizard students who remained in the Southeast Corner.

The Green Witch Christine greeted Locke; the two had collaborated before.

Locke was curious about the seasonal botany of the Four Seasons Garden, so he discussed it with her and obtained some basic spellbooks of the Four Seasons Garden from her.

Due to the limitations of her school of thought, she could only give Locke some less core aspects of seasonal botany.

‘Seasonal botany, divided into spring, summer, autumn, and winter, mainly studies the relationship between the seasons and plants, and also studies seasonal magical plants.’ ‘

Locke pondered, “The Four Seasons Garden has powerful backers. If I didn’t know they were behind it, I could easily find a way to trade, and ignorance is no excuse. But I’m currently a second-circle wizard researcher at Golden Crown Mountain, while the Four Seasons Garden is backed by the Throne Wizard lineage of the Rootcrown Court.”

“This actually prevents me from directly circumventing the restrictions and trading.”

Locke now realized what it meant to “stand tall, see far, but not in detail.”

Higher magic levels certainly have advantages,

but they also present difficulties in certain details.

For example, right now, he couldn’t directly bypass the restrictions to obtain the core doctrines of the Four Seasons Garden, the information on the study of the seasons.

Even bypassing the restrictions to obtain the study of seasonal botany itself would be an impact on other lineages.

“It’s like the saying ‘a newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger.’ That’s roughly the idea. In this situation, if someone were a crystallized wizard, they could find a way to bypass it and obtain the study of the seasons, which wouldn’t be a big deal.”

Locke thought.

“However, let it be.” “The publicly available materials on the Four Seasons are enough for me. As for the more core, esoteric knowledge, if I really want to obtain it, I can simply write to the Rootcrown Court in the Razer Lowlands and apply for a library card.”

Seeing Locke’s satisfaction with the Four Seasons materials she had given him as a gift, the Green Witch Christine beamed and whispered, “Great Wizard Locke, we’re practically fellow disciples now.”

“I have a student here whose magic pressure has reached 800. I wonder if she can learn from your Forest Sanctuary and receive your blessings?”

Albert, hearing this, became somewhat anxious.

After all, although Locke had established the Forest Alliance Fund, that was for future funding of wizard apprentices who had the potential to become formal wizards using the Forest Sanctuary—that was a matter for the future.

But if Christine’s student also became a formal wizard using the Forest Sanctuary, then he wouldn’t be Locke’s only option in the short term.

Was the Green Witch Christine trying to compete with him for the 30,000 magic stones a month’s work Locke offered?

Albert asked, “Witch Christine, would your student be willing to temporarily change her learning focus? Or would it be better not to force her?”

Witch Christine replied, “I am also a wizard who graduated from Lilith Hut. That witch apprentice is my personal disciple. I originally trained her according to the botany curriculum of Lilith Hut. She was originally studying the Harvest Field.”

“The Harvest Field is one of the three anti-negative energy fields of the Mist Force. I’ve checked the information and read the article you submitted to *Southeast*, Great Wizard.”

Locke knew that the Harvest Field wasn’t Lilith Hut’s primary permanent defensive spell model, so that spell model could be taught to others.

It wasn’t restricted by the academy’s contract.

Witch Christine looked at Locke and said, “Great Wizard Locke, my student is indeed very suitable to study our Lilith Hut’s Forest Sanctuary.”

Albert coughed and said, “She’s a student of the Four Seasons Garden. How did she become one of our…?”

(End of Chapter)