Chapter 300 Confirming the Blueprint <TOC> Chapter 302 The Mischievous Tree Spirit
Translator: SumTLMan
“Now I understand that the so-called Master’s title is nothing more than a shackle that binds me,” Promi said to Angel, “From now on, let’s be equals, and you can just call me by my name.”
“But isn’t that inappropriate? I genuinely respect you as a Master,” Angel didn’t understand why Promi would say this.
“Your talent has already surpassed mine. With your current enchantment experience, once you begin studying alchemy, it won’t take many years for you to reach my current level. If I were still called a Master, it would be an insult to me,” Promi’s words were heavy, causing Angel to frown repeatedly.
“I am just a junior alchemy apprentice now, and it’s a sign of respect for my seniors.”
“Once you can inscribe the ‘Prelude of Death,’ you will inevitably reach the level of an intermediate alchemy apprentice. By then, not only your talent but also your skills will surpass mine. If you still call me a Master, it would really make me a laughingstock,” Promi firmly set the tone and then moved on from this topic to discuss blueprint design.
“I just reviewed all your blueprints, and I think the most suitable and convenient one is the gun,” Promi recalled the last time Angel showed him the golden revolver, and he was deeply impressed. The genius idea and design were something he could never come up with in his lifetime.
“Can you inscribe the Prelude of Death on the gun’s surface?” Promi asked.
Angel pondered for a moment; inscribing the “Prelude of Death” magic array on the gun’s surface would not be easy. The magic runes of the Prelude of Death were too numerous and complex, and shrinking them down to such a small area would be an immense challenge to Angel’s meticulousness and craftsmanship.
Angel didn’t give a definite answer: “The difficulty is quite high, I need to give it a try to know for sure.”
Promi nodded, “No need to rush, take your time. If it doesn’t work, we can always try another plan.”
After deciding on the rune, Angel and Promi chatted casually for a while. During the conversation, Angel also got a rough idea of the price for inscribing the “Prelude of Death” magic array on an alchemical weapon.
Alchemy tools with inscribed magic arrays generally cost over 6,000 magic crystals. Depending on the quality of the chosen materials, the perfection of the final product, and the versatility of the magic array, the price may vary but will never be less than 6,000 magic crystals. If a custom order is taken, the price may even double or triple.
With this information, Angel bid farewell to Promi and left.
Before leaving, Promi handed Angel an exquisite wooden box.
“Master, what is this?”
“I told you, just call me by my name from now on.”
After a moment of silence, Angel followed Promi’s advice: “In terms of age, you are older than me, and I should still respect you, Mr. Promi.”
“In the wizarding world, age hierarchy doesn’t matter; it’s about individual talent,” said Promi. Despite his words, he gladly accepted the title of “Mister” and continued, “Inside this box is a small, inexpensive trinket that may be useful for your inscription.”
When Angel returned home and opened the box, he discovered a frameless monocle inside.
To be precise, it was a frameless convex magnifying lens with a gold flower and silver fringe.
Holding it in his hand, Angel didn’t feel any magical reaction; it was a purely handcrafted item. When he put on the monocle, he found that it only had the basic function of magnification.
Although a small trinket, it was quite useful, especially when compressing intricate magic runes on a small firearm with a magical energy array; the magnifying glass’s function became apparent.
Moreover, the monocle’s lens and frame were connected by a mechanical hinge that could move 180 degrees horizontally and 36 degrees vertically. In this way, even when worn daily, the lens could be moved aside when not in use, without interfering with work.
Angel casually hung the monocle on his left ear, and with a flick, it moved to his forehead.
In the following hours, Angel began refining the details of the “gun.” As “Prelude of Death” was an active effect, it could be continuously released as long as it had a power source, so the design of an external magazine could be ignored… The trigger could be designed as a magic release switch, releasing a fixed amount of Prelude of Death’s magical energy into the magical energy array each time it was pulled, effectively conserving energy.
However, controlling the scale of magical energy input was also a problem.
Before long, Angel had listed many questions to tackle one by one before he could begin refining. As for the gun’s appearance, Angel had no intention of designing it himself; instead, he searched for a template in the holographic tablet.
Half a day later, Angel put down his full draft paper, having considered everything from thought process to materials, gaps to rhythms, and all possible outcomes of the refining process. All that remained was the actual operation.
Before refining, Angel opened the holographic tablet and began searching for a template for the “gun.” Eventually, he found inspiration in an animation called —D.Gray-man—.
It was a silver revolver adorned with roses, bones, and crosses.
As he began refining, Angel became extremely cautious, as every second he spent cost money.
The refining process went smoother than expected. With the help of the energy stabilizer, he successfully Mastered the “Prelude of Death” composed of six complex magic runes.
It took a total of 26 hours to complete the inscription of the Prelude of Death, burning through 570 magical crystals. Perhaps Angel’s overall magical power had increased in recent days, as the number of crystals used was much less than his previous estimate of 700. Fortunately, these crystals were provided by Promi at no cost, so Angel didn’t feel too distressed.
Upon completing the final step of solidification, a silver light radiated from the revolving gun in his hand, illuminating the laboratory for dozens of seconds before gradually dissipating. As the silver light faded, Angel prepared to admire his achievement when he heard ghostly wailing sounds in his ears.
Initially, the wails were piercing to Angel’s ears, but after he felt an itch on his butterfly bone, he no longer had any sensation.
Angel frowned, waiting for the ghostly wails to cease.
He thought it was just an ordinary alchemy process, but he was unaware that his creation of this weapon had caused an uproar outside. Centered around Angel’s small courtyard, a low black cloud slowly gathered, making it seem like midnight in the 36th Apprentice Town, even though it was midday with intense sunlight.
Gusts of wind wreaked havoc, stirring up dust and debris.
The apprentices, who were originally in their respective laboratories, received a message about the anomaly through their communicators. In less than five minutes, the majority of the wizard apprentices in Apprentice Town were informed. Even people from other apprentice towns rushed to the scene through the underground market.
All the wizard apprentices stepped out of their houses and stared at the black cloud in the sky.
Was this an attack? But why was there only a black cloud above the 36th Apprentice Town?
…
At that moment, Promi was in a cave with David, tallying the materials they had bought from Twilight. A message startled Promi, and he hurriedly stepped out of the cave.
Upon stepping out, Promi saw the rolling black clouds in the sky, surging like waves.
Having previously studied lightning transformation at the edge of dark clouds, he knew that, as far as clouds were concerned, this black cloud was not large.
However, the issue was not the size of the black cloud, but the omen it represented—an omen of the birth of an intermediate or higher level alchemical item!
He had previously crafted intermediate alchemy items, and due to that single intermediate item, he advanced to the intermediate apprentice level. However, the omen he experienced then was not as significant, affecting only an area of about one hundred meters. This black cloud, covering thousands of meters, engulfed the entire Apprentice Town!
Promi looked at the black cloud, roughly estimating its central location. With his mental calculation abilities, he determined its position within a second.
Promi looked up, his clear eyes seemingly piercing through layers of trees and countless buildings, straight to the center point.
“It’s you, after all!”
At that moment, David also walked out of the cave. While marveling at the black cloud in the sky, he heard Promi’s quiet murmur. David turned to look and asked in a low voice, “Master, what did you say?”
Just as Promi was about to respond, the dark clouds in the sky transformed.
The dark clouds visibly dimmed, as if thick ink had blended with water, becoming more and more diluted.
“Have the dark clouds disappeared?” David looked at the sky. A few apprentices flew up to have a closer look, but before they reached the dark clouds, they vanished?
Promi stared intensely at the dark clouds in the sky, and after a while, he whispered, “They’ve disappeared, but not in the way you think. Look more closely.”
Upon hearing this, David widened his eyes and strained to look at the dark clouds. Soon after, he exclaimed, “No, it’s not a cloud! It looks like a group of human figures forming the cloud!”
As David described, when wizard apprentices flew into the sky to observe the dark clouds up close, they were startled. There were no dark clouds; instead, there were ghostly figures of people and beasts, baring their fangs and claws menacingly in the sky. When these apparitions gathered in large numbers, they resembled a dark cloud.
The reason the “dark cloud” faded was that the ghostly figures were vanishing at a visible rate…
…
In Nisi’s Valley of Souls.
Nisi was frolicking passionately with a maid, not only during broad daylight but also in an open space. All around him were bare souls, millions of male and female souls hopping around, swinging their weapons, cheering him on.
Saka sat on the side, bored and feigning sleep. Even the moans of pleasure didn’t stir any waves within him.
Suddenly, the moaning ceased, making Saka curious. He looked up to find the entire Valley of Souls eerily quiet, with all the souls looking in one direction, their faces showing a hint of fear.
Saka followed their gaze but saw nothing, only knowing that it seemed to be in the direction of the Tree Spirit Courtyard.
Saka walked over to Nisi, who was now fully dressed.
As Saka was about to ask Nisi about the situation, a charming voice beat him to it: “Mentor, what’s going on with you all?”
Accompanied by a sweet, enchanting scent, Saka looked at the newcomer: a tall man with a sexy derriere and voluptuous chest.
“Hookedick, I feel nauseous every time I see you.” Saka tossed these words, wearing a disgusted expression, and left without looking back.
The visitor was indeed Hookedick. His sinister gaze followed Saka’s departure, clenching his fists tightly. When he turned to look at Ness, his expression instantly changed, and he asked with a beaming smile, “Mentor, why are the souls in the valley not moving?”
Nisi looked back at Hookedick, whose smile didn’t reach his eyes, clearly still resentful for being transformed into an androgynous being through the enchantress bloodline.
Although Hookedick despised him, Nisi was extremely satisfied with the current Hookedick.
— He could now conceal his emotions behind a smiling face.
Compared to the reckless and rough man he once was, the current Hookedick might be a hermaphrodite, but his chances of becoming a formal wizard had increased.
At the very least, he was less impulsive and had become more restrained. His temperament had improved significantly compared to before.
Nisi chuckled and said, “They’re not moving because an alchemist has crafted an intermediate item, revealing an anomaly.”
“What does the anomaly have to do with the souls?”
“Of course it’s related, for this item seems to restrain souls…” Nisi glanced in the direction of the apprentice town, and the shadowy figure within the dark clouds caught his eye.
“No, it restrains the undead. Although its effect on souls is minimal, but…” Nisi grinned as he looked at the shivering souls in the valley, “but there’s no guarantee that these souls won’t fall and become undead one day. Therefore, appropriate fear is the soul’s respect for humanity.”
Chapter 300 Confirming the Blueprint <TOC> Chapter 302 The Mischievous Tree Spirit