Chapter 604: The World of Second Circle! |
Inside Feathered Serpent Pavilion, Locke felt that the Dragon Nest Shelter technique had brought him some kind of fortune blessing. He took out from his astral ring the last bottle of luck potion he had saved earlier, the one he had configured inside Feathered Serpent Pavilion that had passed the third round of the Ladder test, but which he hadn't drunk before.
At this moment, he placed the Angel's Tears bracelet into his astral ring.
"What should I do now?" Locke sensed that the fortune produced by misfortune during the refining process, in the instant he drank the luck potion, instantly gathered around him.
Luck was balanced. If he gained extra fortune, someone had to pay with misfortune.
During the process of refining the luck potion, it would be full of misfortune.
And he had already paid this misfortune before, so currently drinking the luck potion could make him lucky.
Locke found the half-dragon shopkeeper. The half-dragon shopkeeper glanced at Locke and bowed, "Esteemed guest, you look spirited, and your magical pressure has recently risen to another level. You seem ready to prepare for advancing to Second Circle wizard."
"Have you figured out a way to pass the fourth round of the Ladder?"
Locke waved his hand. "No. I just thought of how to rapidly increase my magical pressure while thinking about how to pass the fourth round of the Ladder."
The half-dragon bowed to him. "Please go ahead."
Locke entered the free materials area. After quickly grabbing some materials, he began flipping through them. "Potion studies can indeed be used for breeding to a large extent, but it's rarely used to strengthen magical plants."
"It's only used to assist breeding."
"This book tells me that using potions to directly strengthen magical plants is unlikely because wizards and magical plants have different body structures."
Locke fell into contemplation. "Another book also says this is a very difficult thing. Not recommended for First Circle wizards to do."
Following the guidance of fortune in the mysterious void, Locke opened the Wish Lingzhi and found Witch Yekaterina's message page, sending her a few lines about the problem he encountered.
Witch Yekaterina quickly replied. "You probably shouldn't be able to know the specific date I'm leaving Dragon's Sleep. Did you use... a luck potion?"
"Alright, Locke. I've seen your question. Then I must tell you, if you continue flipping through books, most potion study texts should tell you that using potions to directly strengthen magical plants can't be done, right?"
"It's useless wherever you look it up. And if you ask me, I also think using potion studies to strengthen magical plants most likely can't be done."
Locke was stunned for a moment. "Could my idea be wrong? Indeed, momentary inspiration seems very wonderful, but after calming down and thinking about it, you'll often find it's not reliable."
"It's just that the enhanced spiritual sense given by the luck potion made me feel that asking Witch Yekaterina was the solution to the matter. But my teacher directly denied it? This is the solution?"
Locke's expression was peculiar. "Could it be that my enhanced spiritual sense thinks it would be better for me to directly ask an authoritative wizard and cut off my own ideas?"
After hesitating, Locke still sent a message to Witch Yekaterina. "But teacher, I believe that as long as I make appropriate changes for the plants, success is still possible. This is also my only possibility for victory."
"With my current abilities, I may not necessarily win this championship."
In the Origin Academy's seven-story castle, Witch Yekaterina's lips curved upward. "Little stubborn one."
"However, that's really like my personality."
The golden dragon raised its head and said, "Yekaterina, if I'm not sensing wrong, the number of times your true dragon bloodline's will has appeared recently is getting fewer and fewer? What have you done?"
Witch Yekaterina didn't answer. This involved her fundamental secret, which she wouldn't speak of.
...
Inside Feathered Serpent Pavilion, a line of information from Witch Yekaterina shocked Locke.
"What if I said that for the answer you currently want to obtain, what's in the books is all wrong?"
"Why would you think that the information you need to look up must be in books? The First Circle wizard stage has four major levels in total. Because the wizard world has developed very completely, from wizard apprentice to the First Circle crystallization wizard stage, the materials for all seven major levels are very complete."
"But starting from Second Circle wizard, it's not like this anymore. Every step of the path ahead is incomplete and fragmentary. The information you look up is no longer blessed by high-circle wizards and mostly filled with correctness."
"Most of the information you consult is wrong. Those who swear to you that what they say is correct may be considered to have serious errors in their research fifty years later. Articles published in journals being retracted a hundred years later is commonplace. Even if some wizards are thick-skinned and stubbornly hold out for hundreds of years, unwilling to retract, in the end they'll basically be retracted due to incorrect conclusions."
Witch Yekaterina sent him a line of information. "I'm not a potion master. I know nothing about potion studies. I'm only a breeder, a botanical wizard. My bloodline studies are at Second Circle level."
"Therefore, my judgment of your inspiration is that you're unlikely to achieve it. But I don't know the correct answer. Child, in the world of Second Circle, all the correct answers to your research directions need you to explore and verify yourself."
"Precisely because of this, Second Circle wizards have such a great need for colonial planes, for verifying their own ideas. Precisely because of this, Grand Magic needs to go through non-forging, void-forging, pseudo-forging, and true-forging. Only after experiencing these four steps can one possibly achieve Third Circle."
Yekaterina sent a message. "It's only because you now want to become a Second Circle wizard that you need to come into contact with this part of knowledge. You can choose to retreat back to your comfort zone, back into the 'correct' materials. But if you still want to continue forward, you should think carefully about how to continue forward amid incorrect materials and incorrect guidance from others."
"Welcome to the world of quasi-Second Circle."
"Locke, this is the curse of those who pursue truth. You will be filled with doubt about all words. That doubt will consume both you and me."
Seeing Witch Yekaterina's words, Locke immediately realized.
Right, he was the one who possessed the Primordial Fire and had First Circle crystallization level potion master abilities.
He was the wizard whose potion studies level had passed three rounds of the Ladder.
He was asking Witch Yekaterina a question that was fundamentally impossible to answer.
And he also had deeper research on Sea Gold Sand.
So when he looked up materials, who could give him more suggestions on Sea Gold Sand?
No one could.
"In the world of Second Circle wizards, the main way to understand truth is no longer just reading literature, but also exploring yourself. You may also need to conduct extensive planar exploration." Locke thought.
At the same time, he said, "But according to my idea, I can indeed possibly use abyssal potions to abyssify the Tyrant Sea Gold Sand."
In this way, the original Sea Gold Sand would be tree-fernified, tyrannized, and abyssified by him.
Locke recalled the abyssal botany he had once read, recalling all the contents of the eye demon potions.
"It's difficult to abyssify Sea Gold Sand in a short time relying on myself alone." Locke thought. "But I can try using the Synthesis Cube to synthesize potion formulas."
"I just don't have money to buy raw materials. Forget it, I'll go to another of the Big Five Banks and take out another loan of 500,000, then I'll have money again."
"Moreover, there's actually another acceleration method." Under the guidance of the luck potion, Locke closed his eyes and sensed the will of the Supreme Beholder in the mysterious void.
At the same time, he used the techniques of advanced meditation method to protect his mind from being corrupted.
"Abyssal energy is constantly trying to infect plants from other planes anyway. So if I borrow this mechanism, borrow their intentions, and directly ask the Supreme Beholder, perhaps I can ask for something that can help me."
"Using this method, I can shorten the time needed to determine how to abyssify Sea Gold Sand and strengthen Sea Gold Sand for the third time in the shortest time possible."
A mental lightning bolt flashed through his mind.
A beholder as large as a plane appeared in Locke's mind. The beholder let out a dull laugh. "What a bold wizard. In thousands of years, this is the first time I've encountered a wizard so righteously asking me what abyssal materials can safely increase your magical plant's power!"
"Wizard, why should I tell you!"
"Wizard, what benefit is there for me in telling you?"
Looking at the projection of the Supreme Beholder appearing in his mental world, Locke was also slightly shocked. This guy actually really responded.
He was just trying.
Since he came, it meant he was interested in this proposal.
Locke said, "There's no benefit. However, spreading abyssal energy is your nature, isn't it? If you refuse, I'll find other demon archdukes. There will always be demon archdukes interested."
The Supreme Beholder suddenly became furious. Countless mental lightning bolt gazes fell. "Impudence!"
"You obtained the power of our beholder race, deeply combined with our beholder power. And you actually consider cooperating with other demon archdukes!"
"The Prime Material Plane is mine, mine! It belongs to our beholder race. I will occupy the Nightmare Legion. I will become an Abyssal Prince! I will lead the beholder race to collectively ascend! Good, wizard, I'll help you. This is the Supreme Beholder's reward for your courage."
"Never think this is something you obtained with your own wisdom. Hahahaha... Every wizard who thinks they're clever will eventually discover that destiny's gifts have long been marked with prices."
Seventy-two phantoms appeared in Locke's heart.
Those were the auras of the Seventy-Two Abyssal Demon Gods. Seventy-two pillars fell from the sky. Abyssal will favored them. These were the seventy-two most powerful demon god wizards.
Behind each of them was a destroyed world.
The Seventy-Two Pillars Demon Gods were among the strongest destroyers of the abyss. Countless planes in the endless void had suffered because of them.
Five minutes later, Locke opened his eyes in the reading room, his forehead covered in sweat. He breathed lightly, as if he had just experienced a great battle.
Then Locke drank a bottle of Spirit Spring Soul Surge potion.
"Success."
"The Supreme Beholder really gave me enlightenment. I didn't expect him to be so easy to talk to. Next, I just need to use the Synthesis Cube to eliminate the hidden dangers within..."
"Corrupted Star Iron, Weeping Blood Rose... these materials can all be purchased in Dragon Blood Market."
Locke immediately ran out and hurried to the Diamond Golem Bank, headquartered in Dragon Fall Land, one of the Big Five Banks.
Locke quickly took out a loan of 500,000 from there.
Sigh, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. He had finally picked up the habits of Cloud Marsh Wetland wizards.