“Hey, I’m heading to the Abyss tomorrow,” Ido repeated.
“Ah, may the winds be at your back,” Lynn replied.
Winds at my back? Ido mused, chewing on this unfamiliar phrase.
It strangely resonated with her.
“Well, thank you then,” Ido’s eyes curved into crescents as she smiled, hands clasped behind her back, and she walked away, her figure gradually receding as she returned to her room.
Observing her departing figure, Lynn and Ido parted ways at the intersection, with Lynn returning to his laboratory.
Inside the laboratory, goblin engineers were diligently operating the forge, forging armor for Iron Serpent No. 1. They had crafted an improved scale-like outer armor layer for the Iron Serpent, adding an extra layer of scales to its original body. Although the actual enhancent wasn’t significant, the defense had increased by about 20% in testing compared to the previous standard version, and it looked more aesthetically pleasing.
To encourage the innovative spirit of the goblin engineers, Lynn had nad this more complex upgraded version of Iron Serpent No. 1 the “Noble Edition,” priced one magic stone higher than the standard version.
Surprisingly, this Noble Edition gained a considerable market share after its release.
Ti flew by in Demon City without the concept of seasons.
The temperature seed constant throughout the year.
Lynn repeated his daily routine, finding it all not dull at all.
However, since Ido went to the Abyss, she hadn’t returned. Sotis, after finishing an experint, Lynn would glance occasionally at the quiet gray spire next door, then lower his head and imrse himself back into his experints.
“Chirp~”
In the laboratory, a black crow spread its wings, shattering into countless fragnts with a bang, as if exploding into nurous black shadows, blending into the surrounding darkness.
Soon, these shadows coalesced and reshaped on the nearby scaffold, returning to the form of a black crow.
“The experint was finally successful,” Nocturne said satisfactorily in the laboratory.
“I originally thought it would take at least two more years, but it turned out faster than I expected.”
Nocturne turned to look at Lynn, realizing how much this assistant introduced by Wizard Harin had helped him. Lynn’s assistance had saved him a lot of ti. So ti ago, he had suddenly found inspiration, and during that period, Lynn even lived in his wizard tower, accompanying him for three days and nights of continuous work.
If Nocturne had done everything on his own, it would have not only delayed the progress of the experint but might have also caused the loss of inspiration.
Furthermore, in the later stages of the experint, he found that Lynn was progressing rapidly in mutation studies, often offering fresh insights and alternative suggestions for his experints. Sotis, Nocturne even felt that Lynn’s proficiency in mutation studies was not far behind his own.
In Demon City, there were probably no apprentices at the apprentice level who could match Lynn’s proficiency in mutation studies.
“Congratulations on fulfilling your wish, Wizard Nocturne,” Lynn smiled.
“Your help was significant too,” Nocturne acknowledged.
Lynn didn’t respond, well aware of how much assistance he had provided over the past year.
He conducted mutation experints at ho every day, which allowed him to continuously accumulate experience points in mutation studies. He gained 0.2% or 0.1% proficiency in life occupation every day, and later, after becoming more proficient, it was mostly 0.2% every day.
Later, after spending a considerable amount of general experience points, he finally raised his mutation studies to level 3 three months ago.
The reason he had focused on improving mutation studies first was because Lynn had his own motives.
His daily experints with Nocturne had severely affected his own ti managent.
So, he wanted to increase his level in mutation studies as much as possible. In fact, when he reached level 2 in mutation studies, Lynn had found that although Nocturne’s proficiency in mutation studies was higher than his, it wasn’t much higher. There was only one extra level of proficiency.
Sure enough, after breaking through to level 3 in mutation studies, Lynn understood many things, so during the experint, he occasionally, unconsciously revealed so of his thoughts to accelerate the experint progress.
As expected, Wizard Nocturne, with Lynn’s assistance, finally completed the experint within a year.
Lynn felt genuinely gratified by this outco.
“I have two source materials here that should be useful to you. Take a look and see which one catches your eye,” Nocturne said, retrieving two items from his spatial accessory, holding one in each hand.
On the left was a honeycomb-like object in orange-red, about the size of a basketball, yet entirely translucent, with a silkworm-sized entity nestled in its center.
On the right was a jelly-like substance emitting iridescent colors, resembling both a stone and jelly.
“The one on the left is the queen bee’s hive of the Fla Bee Monarch. With proper cultivation, it can be fashioned into a sector that combines defense and attack capabilities. The Fla Bee Monarch has strong reproductive abilities, and its honey is also a valuable raw material,” Nocturne explained.
“The one on the right is Elental Stone Marrow, the core material for constructing an elental pool.”
Lynn examined the two items and, without much hesitation, chose the Elental Stone Marrow.
While the queen bee’s hive was a valuable commodity, using it would replace the need for an attack sector, saving a lot of energy in constructing rune magic arrays. However, Elental Stone Marrow was rarer and thus held higher value.
However, rely building an elental pool did not ensure its success. They still needed the coordinates of an elental plane and assurance that the plane’s inhabitants wouldn’t dismantle their coordinates.
The elental pool acted as a pump, capable of extracting water from so natural ponds. However, it was easy for the original owners of these ponds, the elental lords or kings residing within the elental plane, to pull the plug on their water supply.
Only with their recognition could one legitimately extract water from the elental plane.
Nocturne handed the Elental Stone Marrow to Lynn.
“Are you interested in this?” Nocturne raised the queen bee’s hive in his left hand.
“But wasn’t it supposed to be one source material?” Lynn asked.
“But we can make another deal,” Nocturne proposed.
Hearing another familiar trading proposal, Lynn didn’t imdiately agree. “I’m listening.”
“I have a sister. If you’re willing to beco the son-in-law of our Black Crow clan, then we’re family.”
“Does your sister look like you?” Lynn asked seriously, eyeing the crow’s beak on Nocturne’s face. This was very important.
“Of course, my sister looks like . She’s the belle of our Black Crow clan.”
“Next ti, let’s talk about it next ti.” Lynn said.
“All right, whenever you change your mind, let know. My sister has a beak as big and long as mine, and every feather on her body is as beautiful as the finest cotton in the world.”
“I’ll head back now. Until next ti,” Lynn waved and turned away.
“Okay, I still have so things to take care of. I won’t see you off this ti, but I’ll co find you after I’m done,” Nocturne inford Lynn.
Lynn had earned Nocturne’s respect with his knowledge of mutation studies. Combined with their year-long collaboration in experints, Nocturne now considered Lynn a friend on the sa level as him to a certain extent. Although Lynn wasn’t a wizard yet, Nocturne believed it was only a matter of ti before Lynn beca one, and it wouldn’t take him long.
“Okay,” Lynn responded happily upon receiving the source materials.
Exiting Nocturne’s wizard tower, Lynn noticed that Black Crow, which usually appeared to escort him away whenever he erged into the open, was conspicuously absent.
Suddenly, the sky split open, revealing a massive rift behind it—a tumultuous world ablaze with inextinguishable flas. A colossal hand, resembling a mountain, descended from the heavens.
As the colossal palm opened, a green figure soared out from its grasp.
“Damn old relic, just you wait. I’ll extinguish every fire on your Black Fla Mountain sooner or later.” The green figure landed on the ground, hands on hips, cursing at the sky.
The colossal hand paid no heed to the cursing figure below, retracting back into the rift, which promptly vanished.
In the wizard tower behind him, Nocturne hurriedly rushed out. The last thing he saw was the colossal hand retracting into the sky.
“Is it the headmaster?” Nocturne breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that sothing unexpected had happened.
After cursing for a while, the green figure snorted coldly and turned around, spotting Nocturne standing behind with Lynn at his side.
At this mont, Lynn recognized that the figure with long green hair was none other than Lady Maybetessa, whom he had encountered briefly before.
“Lady Maybetessa, where did you go? I haven’t been able to reach you lately,” Nocturne inquired.
“Oh, it’s nothing. I took a stroll in the Abyss and coincidentally ran into the headmaster, so I asked him to give a lift back,” Maybetessa replied nonchalantly.
Suddenly, she turned her head towards Lynn. “Have we t sowhere before?”
“I believe it was at the academy, esteed Lady Maybetessa,” Lynn replied.
Maybetessa’s face stiffened for a mont, her expression subtly changing.
“Oh, I rember now. You’re the boy who sat in the front row,” Maybetessa said calmly, giving Lynn a aningful glance.
Lynn understood her gaze.
“Oh, I’m tired from the trip. I’ll go ho and rest for a few days,” Maybetessa stretched lazily, revealing her graceful figure.
Nocturne patted Lynn’s shoulder before returning to his wizard tower to attend to his remaining tasks. Lynn boarded Black Crow and returned to Demon City.
Upon returning, Lynn noticed that the invitation in his hand had beco dull and lifeless.
Without daily participation in Nocturne’s experints in the inner court, Lynn suddenly found himself with an additional six hours of free ti each day, which he struggled to adjust to.
Looking at the empty neighboring tower, Lynn went to the service hall and found Toby. “Is there a way to check if soone has encountered danger in the Abyss?”
“Who do you want to check on?” Toby asked. “Theoretically, it’s not possible to check.”
“Ido,” Lynn said.
Toby’s eyes showed a hint of understanding. He knew Lynn didn’t have many acquaintances, so the probability was high that he was referring to her.
Toby pondered for a mont. “Ido’s situation is sowhat unique, but I can tell you.”
Lynn looked puzzled.
“She has a special identity. Her true identity is the daughter of a legendary wizard who ca to the Abyss Wizard Academy two thousand eight hundred and ninety-seven years ago.”
Two thousand eight hundred and ninety-seven years ago?
Lynn hadn’t expected Ido to be so old. It was just a hundred and three years short of a complete three thousand years.
“But in her sixth year at the wizard academy, she died. She died two thousand eight hundred and ninety-one years ago,” Toby stated a chilling fact.
Dead?
Then who had he seen?
Lynn didn’t fear the fact that Ido was supposedly dead. He was already accustod to dissecting nurous corpses and extracting blood in the laboratory every day, let alone dealing with souls.
“I heard her death was quite special. Even her soul couldn’t be recalled, so her father delved into the river of ti, leaving her past shadow in the Abyss Wizard Academy. Thus, she beca a cycle here, a special existence. Every six years, she undergoes a new cycle, but she forgets the mories from the previous cycle.”
Lynn suddenly froze.
He suddenly rembered the faint sigh of the young woman standing beside him on the quiet path a year ago. ‘Always so boring, it seems like you’ve thrown all your ti into seeking the truth. Isn’t the scenery along the way worth stopping for a mont?‘
Forgetting everything every six years, then repeatedly making new friends only to forget them again.
He couldn’t help but wonder who was truly lonely, her or those forgotten by her.
“After the cycle, can’t she rember anything from before the cycle?” Lynn was silent for a mont before asking.
Toby didn’t answer. He just extended a finger.
A small fla ignited at the tip of his finger out of thin air.
After a mont, the fla extinguished.
Then Toby snapped his fingers again, and once more, he extended his index finger, which ignited a small fla.
“Do you think this is still the sa fla?” Toby asked.
——
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