Chapter 263: Set a small goal first

Maisha's efficiency exceeded expectations.

On the fifth day after the war ended, Cyril brought great news.

"The Wisdom Society has approved Maisha's proposal. Starting today, the Star Alliance is officially an affiliated organization of the Codex of Wisdom. Congratulations!"

"Thank you!"

Sunan shook Cyril's hand, both smiling in mutual understanding.

After the formalities, they got down to business.

"Affiliated organizations receive the Codex of Wisdom's protection and access to its internal trade network, but they must fulfill certain obligations in return," Cyril said, handing over several books.

"The Star Alliance needs to submit an annual tribute of resources. The types are listed here—you can combine them however you wish, as long as the total value reaches fifty thousand lower-tier magic stones."

Sunan nodded and skimmed through the materials, finding nothing out of the ordinary.

Frankly, fifty thousand lower-tier magic stones per year was a small price to pay, especially for him.

A medium-sized secondary magic stone vein's annual output alone could cover this amount.

For such a low cost, the Star Alliance could gain the protection of a major wizarding power and access to its trade network, buying valuable time and space for growth—a worthwhile deal by any measure.

"I'll send the resources over soon," Sunan said.

"Deliver them to the Holy Tree Plane," Cyril replied with a smile. "There will be someone to receive them there. Also, these other books contain lists of tradeable items within the Codex of Wisdom. Feel free to browse."

"Now that my message has been delivered, I'll take my leave. When you have the time, let's have a drink together in the City of All Things."

"Sure," Sunan agreed with a smile.

The City of All Things was a rare neutral plane in the multiverse, exclusively allowing wizards entry while strictly prohibiting public fighting. Even the most powerful wizarding factions dared not break its rules, making it a popular gathering place for wizards who disliked conflict.

Over time, the city had evolved into a thriving hub for trade, networking, and relaxation.

After Cyril left, Sunan handed the books to Lize, uninterested in revisiting what he already knew well about the Codex's tradeable items.

"Focus on expanding the golem army and fleet, repairing the wizard towers, and crafting wizard-tier golems. All the resources we need should be purchased through the Codex," Sunan instructed.

"Also, acquire blueprints for plasma cannons, pulse cannons, shadow steel golems, diamond golems, and sovereign golems. Add these potion formulas to the list as well."

He handed Lize a pre-prepared list.

Most of the Star Alliance's potions had been synthesized using Sunan's magical cube, which incurred higher costs than manual production. With the availability of these blueprints, future potion-making could be delegated to others, reducing costs and saving him considerable time.

Lize scanned the list and calculated the required resources. Pressing her lips together, she said, "If we buy all this, it'll cost a fortune. Where are we going to get that many magic stones?"

While the Wolf Tide Plane had several magic stone veins, they couldn't be exploited until the plane was fully under their control—and mining operations would take time to commence.

"I have a way," Sunan said with a meaningful smile. "Start by purchasing as many secondary magic stones as possible from the Codex."

His plan was straightforward: use secondary magic stones to synthesize magic stones.

The Codex's trade list included many resources that couldn't be purchased with gold, requiring magic stones instead.

However, secondary magic stones could be bought with gold. Sunan could use his reserves of gold to acquire secondary magic stones, then synthesize them into higher-tier magic stones for further trading.

While this approach might impact Starlight Continent's economy if overused, it was manageable in the early stages when gold reserves were abundant. Later, he could switch to a cycle of synthesizing and trading magic stones to accumulate wealth.

The downside was that Sunan would need to dedicate time to synthesizing magic stones, essentially turning himself into a production tool.

But Sunan was unbothered. If it benefited the Star Alliance, he was willing to put in the effort.

Though surprised by his suggestion, Lize refrained from questioning him. She had long suspected that Sunan possessed a unique method for synthesizing magic stones.

"Also, prioritize acquiring materials for body reconstruction. Let me know if there are any missing components, and I'll find a way to procure them," Sunan added.

At this, Lize's spirits lifted.

"Understood," she said, her voice filled with anticipation.

After two millennia trapped in spectral form, the prospect of finally regaining a physical body was exhilarating.

"One more thing—gather intelligence on other factions and planar clusters."

"I understand."

Lize knew the importance of information.

The multiverse was vast and complex, home to countless factions and races with intricate relationships. Navigating this labyrinth without proper knowledge could lead to unnecessary conflicts.

Though once well-versed in multiversal affairs during her time in the Starlight Guild, two thousand years of isolation had rendered her knowledge outdated.

She planned to use Tanner, the wandering wizard stationed on Starlight Continent, as well as the City of All Things, as information channels.

Leaving these tasks in Lize's capable hands, Sunan returned to the top floor of the wizard tower.

Becoming an affiliated organization of the Codex of Wisdom felt like a significant milestone, lifting a weight off his shoulders.

The Star Alliance's centuries of preparation had finally borne fruit.

But this was no time for complacency.

The Dark Throne wouldn't take their defeat lightly. While the Codex's protection provided a buffer, it was not an absolute guarantee.

The best way to ensure safety was to grow stronger.

"If the Star Alliance becomes powerful enough to rival or surpass the Dark Throne, the tables will turn—they'll be the ones worrying about us."

Sunan reminded himself that Yuxi was just a small piece of a much larger puzzle.

"Yuxi was merely a Royal Robe Wizard candidate. Above him are Royal Robe Wizards, Crown Wizards, and the Triumvirate Thrones."

Compared to these titans, Yuxi was nothing more than a slightly stronger ant.

However, Sunan wasn't overly concerned.

Factions like the Dark Throne were primarily focused on the Realm of Truth or conquering new planar clusters. They wouldn't waste much attention on a fledgling Star Alliance confined to Starlight Continent—at least not in the short term.

"My priority now is to strengthen myself, advance to True Spirit Wizard, and build up the Star Alliance's power."

These two goals were intertwined.

"If I recall correctly, there were several major events in the multiverse after Starlight Year 2000. Perhaps I can leverage them."

Sunan recalled three significant occurrences in particular.

The first was the Wizarding Civil War, a massive conflict between the orderly factions—led by the Deep Blue Alliance, the Codex of Wisdom, and the Star Bell Tower—and the chaotic factions, spearheaded by the Dark Throne, the Blood Jungle, and the Wild Spirits.

This war spanned thousands of planes and became one of the most extensive battles in multiversal history.

Adding to the chaos were meddling deities, whose interference only made matters worse.

The second event was directly tied to these deities—a coordinated wizard attack on the Spider Queen.

The ambush occurred after the Spider Queen was injured in a divine conflict. Some wizards, having caught wind of her weakened state, joined forces to assassinate her.

Ultimately, the wizards were annihilated.

Speculation abounded that the ambush was a trap set by the Spider Queen herself, a known master of deception.

Sunan considered monitoring this event—he might have an opportunity to play the role of a clever opportunist.

The third event involved the Ancient Swarm, a race of hyper-aggressive insects from the Ancient Swarm Plane Cluster.

Previously, the Swarm had limited its invasions to remote planes, posing no real threat to wizards or deities.

But at some point, the Swarm began launching coordinated assaults on prominent wizard and divine territories, provoking a united response.

What became of this conflict, Sunan didn't know, as he had crossed over before its resolution.

The Wizarding Civil War seemed to have occurred around Starlight Year 2600, and the ambush on the Spider Queen happened sometime after Starlight Year 3500. As for the exact timing..."

Sunan shook his head. Back then, he had merely regarded these events as interesting anecdotes and paid no attention to the precise dates. Now, he could only recall rough estimates.

"Never mind. I'll keep an eye out when the time comes."

The ancient insect race aside, the Wizarding Civil War and the ambush on the Spider Queen were two significant events. If leveraged properly, they could greatly accelerate the Star Alliance's development.

The former, especially, was unavoidable. Given its massive scale, the Star Alliance would inevitably be drawn into the conflict. Instead of being caught off guard, it was better to prepare in advance and turn the crisis into an opportunity.

"Let's set a small goal: lead the Star Alliance to conquer a planar cluster and become a major wizarding faction!"

"That way, even if we part ways with the Codex of Wisdom, we'll have the strength to stand against the Dark Throne on our own!"

With his future goals set, Sunan felt more at ease and shifted his thoughts to his cultivation.

After advancing to a Tier 3 wizard, Sunan immediately absorbed all the divine energy he had accumulated. However, since the time between his Tier 2 crystallization and Tier 3 breakthrough was so brief, he had not amassed many elemental crystal cores. As a result, his mental refinement did not improve significantly.

Advancing mental refinement as a Tier 3 wizard was agonizingly slow. Even with the triple boosts of Tier 6 potions, the ultra-large elemental pool, and divine energy, the rate of progress remained frustratingly low.

After over two months of cultivation, Sunan's mental refinement had increased by just 0.01%.

"Next, I'll acquire elemental dust from the Codex of Wisdom. With sufficient divine energy absorption daily, my cultivation speed should improve."

Sunan roughly estimated that with ample divine energy, he could reach Tier 3 liquefaction within 200 to 300 years.

If things progressed smoothly, he might achieve Tier 3 crystallization within 400 to 500 years.

At that point, he could begin to comprehend the power of laws.

If everything went well, Sunan might ascend to a True Spirit Wizard before the ambush on the Spider Queen occurred.

With the strength of a True Spirit Wizard, his chances of success in any involvement with the Spider Queen's ambush would be much greater.

"Additionally, I need to synthesize and upgrade my magical tools and continue studying Tier 5 spells."

At the Tier 3 level, spells contributed less to a wizard's combat prowess.

Tier 3 wizards relied more on their innate abilities and magical tools in battle.

At the True Spirit level, the importance of spells diminished even further.

The true determinant of strength was the power of laws.

Despite this, Sunan had no intention of giving up on spell study.

In his view, the greatest value of spells wasn't enhancing combat power but their applicability in unique situations.

For instance, Tier 5 spells offered versatile solutions:

To dismantle an impenetrable barrier, he could use Break Barrier.

To command extraplanar creatures, Lesser Extraplanar Binding was invaluable.

For long-distance teleportation over hundreds of kilometers, Teleportation was the answer.

To remotely monitor a specific area or target, Scrying Eye was the spell of choice.

He could even possess another being with Demonic Vessel!

The uses of spells were endless. Offensive and defensive spells were merely the most common categories; many others served specialized purposes.

In critical moments, a single spell might make all the difference.

Thus, Sunan refused to abandon spell study.

Besides, learning spells came easily to him—much easier than for other wizards.

By dedicating a bit of time each day, Sunan could, over the years, amass an impressive repertoire of

spells.

"I also need to make time to visit the Wolf Tide Plane."

Exhaling deeply, Sunan seated himself beside the elemental pool, took out an elemental crystal core, and began cultivating. (End of Chapter)