Chapter 351: The Funeral

After resolving the issue with the Holy Tree Sprite, Richard immediately began inquiring about the specifics of the Secret Realm. The World Mushroom answered all his questions in detail.

This merging of Secret Realms not only expanded the area of the realm by several dozen times but also brought Richard over a dozen creatures from other worlds and dozens of magical plants.

Unfortunately, none of these creatures were sentient, and the magical plants were not rare species.

In addition to the creatures, the merging of the Secret Realms also brought Richard two small mineral veins and some special ores from other worlds.

The World Mushroom provided Richard with samples of the ores from these veins. As an Alchemist Wizard, Richard immediately recognized the minerals contained within these veins.

"This is enchanted metal, quite common," Richard said, tossing aside one of the samples.

But his eyes lit up as he examined the other sample. "This, however, is different. If I'm not mistaken, this is Jarbil metal."

Jarbil metal, an extremely hard anti-magic metal, is highly resistant to void storms and is often used as the primary material for the outer shell alloys of Floating Cities.

This metal is considered a strategic resource. Whenever it is discovered in any world, the conquerors of that world are required to hand over the mineral vein to the Council of Truth for development. As a result, this metal is virtually unavailable on the market.

"Master, is this ore important?" the World Mushroom suddenly asked.

"It's not just important—it's precious! This metal is nearly impossible to buy," Richard replied excitedly.

"I see. If you need it, I can make this mineral vein larger."

"Good... Wait, what do you mean by 'larger'?" Richard asked, confused.

"I can promote the growth of this ore, making the deposits in this small vein more abundant."

The World Mushroom's voice remained dull, but to Richard, it sounded like a thunderclap.

"Y-you... you can synthesize ores?" Richard asked in disbelief.

"Not synthesize, but promote. The Secret Realm where this vein was born has been integrated by me. So I understand how this vein was formed and how it develops. And since I can control the environment and rules of the Secret Realm, I can naturally promote the growth of this vein."

After hearing the World Mushroom's explanation, Richard felt a slight sense of disappointment. So it couldn't synthesize minerals after all. If it could, he would truly have material freedom.

"I see. What does promoting the growth of the vein require?" Richard asked casually.

If promoting the growth of the vein didn't come at a high cost, he wouldn't mind having a larger mineral vein at his disposal.

"Promoting the growth of the vein will slow down the expansion of the Secret Realm."

"How much slower?"

"That depends on how fast you need it. Once my roots are fully spread, the Secret Realm can expand by about thirty acres of land per day. If you want to promote the growth of the vein, this number would need to be reduced by at least a quarter."

"Then forget it, forget it," Richard waved his hand repeatedly.

For now, Jarbil metal only held research value for him. Due to its regulated status, Richard could hardly sell it on the market. Moreover, because of this, there were virtually no alloy formulas for this metal available. This made it difficult for Richard to use it for production.

Slowing down the growth of the Secret Realm for something of such limited use was a foolish idea, and Richard wasn't about to do something so stupid.

"According to what you're saying, you can promote the growth of mineral veins. Does that mean you can promote the growth of veins in any Secret Realm you've integrated?"

"Theoretically, yes."

Richard nodded thoughtfully.

The World Mushroom's ability to promote the growth of mineral veins was truly extraordinary. If he could integrate more Secret Realms with rare alchemy materials, he could achieve material freedom in the physical world.

However, this thought only flashed through Richard's mind for a moment before he discarded it. To merge Secret Realms with rare mineral veins, he would have to become a Great Wizard. But as a mere Third Circle Wizard who was only a little over four hundred years old, the distance to becoming a Great Wizard was too vast. Thinking about it now would only make him restless.

After asking a few more questions about the Secret Realm, Richard gained a preliminary understanding of it. However, he still had no clear idea of how to develop it further.

For now, Richard still intended to use the Secret Realm as an alchemy workshop. As for exploring its rules... Richard felt he should first solidify his foundation in the Second Circle.

He was likely the weakest Third Circle Wizard in the history of the Wizard World, if not the weakest ever.

...

A week later, dressed in black robes, Richard and Jolod, along with several high-ranking officials from the Black Tower Wizard Academy, arrived at the Frost Academy's base.

At the base, Wizards from multiple Wizard academies gathered outside the funeral hall, waiting silently with the Wizards of the Frost Academy for the coffin to be carried out.

Wizard funerals do not have a fixed format, but the general process is divided into three stages.

The first stage involves the mourning guests gathering outside the funeral hall. The coffin of the deceased will be carried out by the deceased's family, friends, or those closely associated with the deceased.

The second stage involves the coffin and the guests following the same path to the burial site, where the coffin is then laid to rest under the watchful eyes of the guests.

The third stage is the memorial stage, where the deceased's family and friends take turns to speak. There are no restrictions on what can be said—it can be reminiscences or sharing amusing stories from the deceased's life.

Richard stood outside the funeral hall. As a Third Circle Wizard, he was able to stand at the front of the crowd with the other high-ranking academy officials.

Soon, the bell rang.

Four Wizards dressed in white robes carried a coffin out of the funeral hall. These four were the vice-president of the Frost Academy, the commander of the Frost Legion, Vladimir's Wizard companion, and his student.

With sorrowful expressions, they carried the coffin step by step toward the burial site.

For the Wizards, the weight of the coffin was far less than the weight of the grief it carried.

Following the coffin, the guests arrived at Vladimir's burial site. The old Wizard had chosen to be buried in the Frost Academy's public cemetery, where many of the academy's predecessors rested.

This old Wizard, who had dedicated his life to the legion, chose not to leave the legion even in death.

The four Wizards placed the coffin in the prepared grave and then sealed it with shovels.

Silence—still silence.

Throughout the entire process, not a single Wizard made any unnecessary sound.

After the grave was sealed, led by the Wizards of the Frost Academy, each Wizard attending the funeral placed a flower on the grave.

These flowers were all kinds of strange, but each was one that the Wizards believed held mourning significance.

After everyone had placed their flowers, the funeral entered its final stage—the speeches.

The first to speak was the commander of the Frost Legion. He stepped up to the tombstone and bowed slightly to the gathered Wizards.

"To be honest, Master Vladimir specifically instructed me before his eternal rest not to make the funeral a big event. He wanted it to be as quiet as possible, so his old rivals wouldn't come to his grave to mock him.

But clearly, I didn't follow his instructions.

Master Vladimir's temperament is something I'm sure you're all familiar with.

He had a fiery temper.

In normal circumstances, if I didn't follow his instructions, he would storm into my office with a scowl and use every trick in the book to make me fulfill his demands.

This gave me an idea.

I thought that if I didn't follow his instructions for the funeral, perhaps this hot-tempered Master would rise from his coffin, burst into my office, and berate me for my actions.

But my experiment failed.

Master Vladimir truly is at eternal rest. My office will never again be invaded by an old Wizard with a scowl.

This might seem like something to celebrate.

But as I happily gazed at my clean office door, I suddenly froze.

For years, I've complained about this old Wizard using his seniority to disregard etiquette and disrespect his superiors.

But as I look back, I realize that every time, he was right.

He spared no effort in using his wisdom to make the legion better.

But I always overlooked this.

And by the time I noticed, it was already too late.

This was my oversight, my mistake. I should apologize to Master Vladimir, but unfortunately, he can no longer hear me.

So I can only say this here: Master Vladimir was the finest equipment master I've ever known.

His achievements will forever be recorded in the legion's history!"

...

The speech stage lasted for half a day. Various Wizards who were close to Vladimir took turns to speak, and even Richard gave a brief speech, paying tribute to the old Wizard who had provided him with immense help.

After the speeches, the Frost Academy held a banquet at the base, and most of the guests who weren't in a hurry stayed.

"Excuse me, are you Master Tosio?" Richard asked, holding a glass of wine and approaching a despondent Wizard in a corner of the hall.

Tosio looked up, his face streaked with tears. He looked at Richard, feeling a sense of familiarity but unable to place where he had seen him before.

"I am. And you are?"

"I'm Richard, one of the chairmen of the Richard Jolod Chamber of Commerce. I spoke at your master's funeral earlier today."

Hearing Richard's name, Tosio was momentarily stunned before he nervously stood up.

As a White Wizard, the name Richard Jolod was legendary. As the head of an emerging Wizard Chamber of Commerce, the Magic Support Vehicles they produced had been deployed in several battlefields and received high praise from various legions.

But why would such a prominent figure seek out a minor Wizard like him? "I'm sorry, I was too overwhelmed with grief at the funeral and didn't notice the guests who spoke. Please forgive me."

Richard waved his hand, indicating that it was unnecessary.

"Master, there's no need to be nervous. I understand completely."

"Then what can I do for you?" Tosio asked cautiously.

He had heard Vladimir mention that he had some connection with the chairman of the Richard Jolod Chamber of Commerce.

But with Vladimir gone, would this connection still hold? Richard smiled at him. "Master, there's no need to be nervous. Master Vladimir showed me great kindness. In the Crimson Sun World, he once told me to look after his students after his passing.

Now that he's at eternal rest, I feel it's time to fulfill my promise.

What field of research are you in?"

Hearing Richard's explanation, tears once again streamed down Tosio's face.

Even in death, his master hadn't forgotten to look after him, a fool.

Wiping away his tears, Tosio replied with a choked voice, "Master, my research is in the field of enchanted architecture—specifically, battlefield fortresses and the construction of Wizard Towers."

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