Chapter 28: Return (Please Follow)

"The Wizard is dead? What does that mean?"

Staring at the last words of the notebook's owner, Richard plunged deep into thought.

If this sentence were taken literally, it meant that the wizard of this laboratory had died. However, to delve deeper, Richard couldn't help but consider the implied meaning of the statement.

The Wizard is dead, but how had he died?

Was it an experimental accident, or had he died of old age?

If it were an experimental accident, then this laboratory was a dangerous treasure trove; but if he had died of natural causes, then this laboratory had become a tomb of the wizard.

Since ancient times, tomb raiding had always been a perilous trade.

If it was natural causes, then Richard would have to consider whether he should explore this laboratory.

"Richard, haven't you finished yet?"

Ali's voice roused Richard from his thoughts, and he closed the notebook and smiled at her.

"This notebook records the modifications of a spell, I'll copy it for you when we get back to the Academy."

"Wow! Richard, you are so kind!"

Ali lunged at Richard, giving him a big hug.

In the Academy, the spell models available for exchange were the most primitive ones. Modern wizards had long extended these spells in various forms based on their research. This was also a hidden test for wizard apprentices from the academy.

Using only the primitive spell models from the academy would undoubtedly make such apprentices suffer greatly in apprentice duels.

John found quite a few things on Loken, aside from the pair of magic boots on his feet, Loken had also contributed three Magic Stones to Richard.

Richard gave the Magic Stone with just a bit of magic power left to Old John as a reward; this old man's usefulness in the Black Stone Mountain Range was terrifying, from leading the way to tracking, there seemed to be nothing he couldn't do.

"Old John, this is for you."

Old John joyfully accepted the Magic Stone, then patted Richard's chest.

"Master Wizard, just command me. I, Old John, will do my utmost."

Richard nodded and turned to Ali.

"Ali, you take these two Magic Stones."

"Ah? For me? I can't take it!" Ali shook her head repeatedly, "You killed him, the Magic Stones should be yours. I can't take this money."

"Then consider it a loan. I'm lending you these two Magic Stones," Richard pushed the stones into Ali's hands. "I need a long-term, trustworthy teammate, and these stones are my investment in your future."

Richard liked Ali's attitude towards Loken; someone who clearly differentiated between love and hate was undoubtedly the best kind of teammate.

Wizards can be lone wolves because they have enough time to build a foundation. However, wizard apprentices have only a maximum of thirty years, which seems long, but if you subtract the time spent earning Magic Stones, meditating, traveling, and resting, there is actually very little time left.

This meant that no wizard apprentice could be proficient in everything.

A trustworthy teammate was undoubtedly the best way to compensate for one's shortcomings.

Moreover, Ali had also displayed the talent of a Curse Wizard, which, by itself, made her worthy of Richard's deep association.

"This... then I will accept it!"

Ali bit her lip and accepted the Magic Stones, firmly resolving to quickly enhance her power.

After dividing the Magic Stones, Richard examined Loken's boots.

The boots were called Gale Boots, engraved with a Gale Technique on the soles, which when activated, used the Wind Element to speed up movement.

This was quite an upgrade for Richard at the moment.

If he had had these boots just before, Loken would never have been able to dodge the first strike.

After resting in the valley for a night, Richard followed Old John to the habitat of the White Crystal Deer the next morning.

The White Crystal Deer was a demonized creature, its scale-like white crystal surface was one of the raw materials for many Crystal Balls.

After confirming that the number of White Crystal Deer had not diminished, Richard wanted to collect some White Crystal for alchemy materials. But the next moment, he understood why the Academy required low-level apprentices to form teams.

Beams of white light shot from the deer's antlers, and although each beam wasn't very strong, Richard was facing a hundred White Crystal Deer.

"Ouch... that really hurts."

Richard, smoking all over, leaned against a tree. If it weren't for the protection of Black Scale and the Life Magic of the arm bracelet, he would have almost turned into a roasted piglet.

"Who told you not to listen, Old John already said not to get close, but you wouldn't listen," Ali said with a stifled laugh.

"Alright, alright, at least I got something," Richard said, shaking the bag of White Crystals in his hand.

Having left the habitat of the White Crystal Deer, Richard followed Old John to several herb gathering spots frequented by wizards.

Because of the wrong season and timing, many of the herbs had not fully grown.

But Richard, thinking since he was already there, collected a few immature herbs, planning to nurture them when he returned.

After all, Magic Potions were also a part of alchemy.

After collecting the herbs, Richard followed Old John in the mountains for two days to find traces of the Black Striped Water Python.

Eventually, in a swamp, Richard found a juvenile Black Striped Water Python about five meters long.

As a low-level Magic Beast, it possessed the ability to control the Water Element, coupled with its strong muscles, it could easily strangle a high-ranked knight in the swamp.

For this reason, Old John even used himself as bait to lure the beast out of the swamp into the dense forest.

"Master, your Magic Stones were well spent!" Old John said to Richard while panting and hiding up a tree.

Once out of the swamp, the Black Striped Water Python's advantage was significantly reduced.

Hiding on the side, a flash of blue light from Richard's foot instantly increased his speed. Taking advantage of a surprise attack, he used Wind Crow Slash to cut the Black Striped Water Python into two.

However, Magic Beasts were notoriously tenacious in life, and even though it was cut into two sections, the Black Striped Water Python still struggled relentlessly.

The foul-smelling blood freely flowed in the forest, controlled by the Black Striped Water Python, turning into continuous jets of blood assaulting the surrounding dense forest.

But by this time, Richard and his group had already hidden far away, letting it struggle in vain.

After about ten minutes, the Black Striped Water Python finally stopped moving. Seeing this, Richard approached the snake's body, severed its head with a sword, and collected a bag of its fresh blood with a water sac.

He planned to refine it back home and see if it could be sold.

"Ali, try using this stuff for a spell," Richard called out to Ali.

Ali cautiously approached the corpse, her fingertips released a black mist that entered into the rear half of the body.

Crack, crack, crack...

Under the influence of the spell, the Black Striped Water Python's body continued to dry up, eventually becoming just skin and bones.

Soon, a large bump rose at the tail end of the Black Striped Water Python's body, and a light black-striped, white worm emerged from the bump.

"This time it's different,"

Ali explained to Richard as she put the worm into her pocket, "Black Striped Worms are a higher grade than Pure White Worms. This one has only one ring of black stripes, but its effect is five times that of the Pure White Worms. The price has also quintupled."

Richard, hearing this, got a bit excited, "That's great news. There's still half left, try again."

Curse Worms were so valuable, they could be a good source of income.

But Ali shook her head upon hearing this.

"I can't take more Curse Worms. According to the books, a low-level Apprentice shouldn't possess more than two Curse Worms, as having more could bring unpredictable bad luck."

"You can't take more... but I can," Richard said with a smile.

Saying so, Richard pulled the other half of the body over to Ali.

"Don't waste it; these are Magic Stones."

...

Having obtained the head of the Black Striped Water Python, Richard had accomplished his goal for this trip.

On the way out of the mountains, Richard casually asked Old John if there had been any mudslides in the Black Stone Mountain Range in recent years.

The answer he got was that a major mudslide had occurred twenty years ago, and legends say that monsters appeared in the area where the mudslide occurred; they always avoided that place when leading apprentices.

With this answer, Richard also had a base in his mind.

If what Old John said was true, then this Wizard's laboratory might still be undiscovered.

He still had a chance.

Leaving Black Stone City, Richard and Ali took a Magic Airship back to the Academy.

After completing the mission, Richard dove into his dorm to begin crafting Magic Equipment.