Chapter 12 Take My Fireball Technique

The Synthetic Beast Core looked like an enlarged neuron, with several thick blood vessels extending outward from the core. When the Magic Beast was alive, a massive amount of blood was transported to every part of the body through these vessels, delivering a constant stream of energy to every corner of the Magic Beast's body.

But now, the Magic Beast was rapidly decaying, while the core still pulsated healthily.

Richard held the Synthetic Beast Core, its outward-extending blood vessels now sealed off, with the remaining blood beginning a tiny circulation inside it.

It felt to Richard not so much like an organ, but more like a type of parasitic creature.

"No."

Richard made a decision.

After having fainted during the last extraction, he had learned from the painful experience and decided that he would absolutely perform extractions only in safe places from now on.

Moreover, creating the Synthetic Beast Core at this critical time was useless, and there was no loss in waiting to extract it later.

It had only been a few minutes since the Magic Beast had died before it turned into a pile of white bones. Richard searched in the sewage and a Magic Wand wrapped in a bag caught his eye.

"It seems this is the Magic Tool prepared by the Academy."

Richard got his hands on the Magic Wand; it was about half a meter long and weighed around one catty. The body of the wand was pitch black with a spherical Crystal embedded at the top, the size of a baby's fist. After Richard explored it with his spiritual power, a message that seemed to be left by the maker immediately became clear in his mind.

[This Magic Wand is engraved with the Lesser Fireball Technique, with a recharge time of three minutes, and does not possess a self-charging circuit. Each use consumes one-third of a standard Magic Stone.]

Richard was amazed at the method of information transfer, a method he had never encountered before, it felt incredibly curious.

"Lesser Fireball Technique, each use costs one-third of a Magic Stone, plus the charging time." Richard waved the Magic Wand a couple of times, "The cost-effectiveness seems a bit low compared to the Ice Cone Ring in this exam."

The power of the Lesser Fireball Technique should be higher than that of the Ice Cone, but the enemies he was facing now, besides Magic Beasts, were almost all high-offense low-defense types. The Ice Cone Skill, which had virtually no charging time and low consumption, was perfectly suited to the current environment.

The Lesser Fireball Technique seemed like overkill.

"But having it is better than nothing; who knows, I might encounter a Magic Beast later."

Richard shook his head, feeling he was being a bit too greedy.

After securing the Synthetic Beast Core, Richard cast the Silence Technique on himself. It was the middle of the night, but the commotion caused by the Magic Beast was not small, and there might be people looking to take advantage of it.

It was always better to be safe.

Shortly after Richard left, a few Apprentices looking to scavenge arrived beside the carcass of the Magic Beast.

"We're late. Someone got here first."

"What do we do now, a wasted trip?"

The Apprentices exchanged glances, then turned to look at the bald Apprentice who was leading them.

After a moment of contemplation, the bald Apprentice was about to make a decision when suddenly a tall figure leaped out from the woods.

This person was two meters tall, with a burly figure clad in Chain Armor, carrying seven or eight bags around his waist, wielding a two-handed greatsword in one hand, and holding a half-dead Wizard Apprentice in the other.

"You don't have to think about what to do, because you're all going to die here."

...

The next day, the sun rose as usual.

Richard stood up from a pile of dry leaves. After meditating, his spirit was as refreshed as if he had slept for a night, but a good spirit didn't mean his body was fine. After a day of travel and a night of pursuit, ache coursed through Richard's entire body.

But the road still had to be traveled.

Dragging his sore body, Richard set out again. The havoc wrought by last night's Magic Beast was not without benefit; apart from the Magic Tool on its body, the forest was also trampled into several small paths by the creatures.

This saved Richard quite a bit of effort.

With the Light Body Skill's blessing, Richard easily covered half the distance on the second day.

And as he got closer to the meeting point, the density of Apprentices also grew higher.

These Apprentices had at least two or three bags each, and upon meeting each other, except for a few with odd temperaments, the vast majority would display their Crystal Balls and then turn away.

The ones who made it halfway weren't easy targets—most had blood on their hands. With the risks outweighing the benefits, few were willing to gamble with their lives.

At night, Richard, as usual, hid among dry leaves for meditation.

Although those who reached this area had mostly completed the examination conditions, it's always better to be safe than sorry. During the day, Richard always felt like someone was trailing him. This sensation made him feel as if he were on pins and needles, and he struggled to enter a Meditative State.

Not far from Richard, a tall figure with a dozen bags strapped around his waist crouched in a tree, silently observing Richard's hiding spot.

"Followed him for a day, and this kid did nothing but travel, avoiding others whenever possible. Such a coward, and he's the one who killed that Magic Beast?"

He had initially thought that an Apprentice capable of killing a Magic Beast would at least be a Knight—a worthy opponent. But after a day of observation, this person was no different from a straw bag.

Could he be hiding his true strength?

...

Engrossed in meditation, Richard's heart suddenly tightened, and the piercing sound of something slicing through the air made him instinctively duck.

With a 'thud,' Richard saw a wooden spear as thick as an arm appear beside him.

The spear, probably longer than a meter with one end sharpened, quivered continuously at the tail end after embedding itself in a tree trunk.

Someone had attacked—a skilled one at that.

Richard's heart sank, and he immediately gripped the Fireball Magic Wand he'd acquired the day before.

To do something like that with a piece of wood, the attacker must either have a very powerful Magic Tool or be a Genius Knight.

Richard hoped for the former, because the latter could possess both Magic Tools and a Knight's prowess.

"You dodged. Seems like you do have some skill,"

A voice came from not far away, and Richard turned to see a large figure wielding a two-handed greatsword, stepping out from the woods with a dozen bags tied around his waist.

"A dozen bags... looks like I've run into a madman."

Richard's hold on his Magic Wand tightened unconsciously. In this exam where killing one person was enough to pass, this man wore the bags of over a dozen slain Apprentices as trophies at his waist.

The man was clearly mad, and a powerful one at that.

"Allow me to introduce myself," the large figure shouted. "I am Saban Chavez of the Norton Empire. May I ask for your name?"

Using the moonlight filtering through the trees, Richard made out the newcomer's features: red hair, slanted eyes, high nose bridge, and a scar stretching from his nose bridge to the corners of his eyes.

The Great Sword rested on his shoulder, his Chain Armor bore many tears, yet his body showed no injuries.

"This is a master, possibly a Knight," Richard concluded.

"No reply?"

After waiting in vain for Richard to divulge his name, Saban shrugged with resignation and, a second later, charged toward Richard with the Great Sword.

"If you won't even give your name, then you can go to hell."

Richard watched Saban coldly, as a red gleam flickered from the Magic Wand in his hand.

"Idiot. Take this Fireball Technique."