Chapter 727 The Final Price <TOC> Chapter 729 Three Routes
Translator: SumTLMan
The auction ended in an awkward atmosphere shrouded in mystery.
The auction house didn’t make things difficult for David, and after deducting the fees, they gave him nearly 190,000 magic crystals. Although he had passed the test set by the auction house, David’s heart wasn’t filled with joy.
As he hadn’t yet left the triangular auction venue, he had already seen more than one malicious expression on the faces of those around him. He was a mere apprentice, but he possessed an amount of magic crystals that most wizards couldn’t produce at a moment’s notice. To others, David’s face seemed to scream: “I’m weak; come and rob me.”
Even the less skilled apprentices started sharpening their knives. In their minds, even if they only got a small share of the loot, it would be more profitable than their decades of hard work.
In this vortex of malice, all David could do was take out his frosty katana, hoping to deter the covetous onlookers with the advantage of his weapon.
However, his strength was evident, and even with a sharp weapon in hand, he was as harmless as a baby holding a kitchen knife.
At that moment, Silon, standing on the fourth floor, was silently watching the jittery David.
A red-robed magic servant crouched beside him, making a throat-slitting gesture with his hand: “Lord Silon, shall we…?”
Silon hesitated for a moment, then shook his head: “No, although he’s just an apprentice, his relationship with that influential figure in the alchemy world seems profound. Otherwise, the alchemist wouldn’t have entrusted him with the alchemy illusion to auction.”
“Moreover, the wizards of the Savage Grottoes are not foolish. Didn’t you notice that Liana stayed behind?”
The red-robed magic servant asked doubtfully: “You mean, Liana decided to protect this boy?”
“Exactly. When Liana spoke up earlier, the other wizards present had already figured it out. Why do you think they so generously backed down, unconcerned about that coveted auction item?” Silon said, then turned to leave: “Never mind him, today’s auction has inflicted significant damage on us. To salvage our reputation, we must do something extraordinary at the big auction early next year. It seems we must bring out some truly valuable items.”
Silon went straight to Shalom, who was now sitting in a dark, quiet room. His expression seemed normal, but there was an unmistakable fury in his eyes.
“Lord, today’s events are settled, but there are still ways to remedy the situation,” Silon said respectfully.
“Go on,” Shalom replied, his tone still suppressed.
“First, we can make some moves at the big auction, and secondly, we didn’t truly offend Angel today, so we can take advantage of that. Moreover, these two solutions can be combined.”
“You mean, put an alchemical product from Angel up for auction at the big event?” Shalom asked.
“Exactly.”
“But where can we get such an auction item?”
Silon: “As long as there’s a suitable interest, even enemies can become our closest partners. For a destined-to-shine supernova like Angel, investing in a good relationship in advance is not a loss for us. Just think about why Sky Auction is so successful? It’s all because of those few master alchemists standing behind it, and Angel has that potential.”
Shalom considered it for a moment. Although he was still resentful about what happened today, he had to admit that, from a rational perspective, Silon was right.
“Then you go ahead and do it your way,” Shalom ultimately agreed with Silon’s words.
Silon nodded, exuding confidence. Little did he know that Angel had already left the Vast Continent, and there were no plans to return in the near future.
On the other hand, seeing David all alone, the malice around him intensified.
Someone even directly approached him, threatening, “Just give me a thousand magic crystals, and I guarantee I’ll leave immediately; otherwise… you won’t want to know the consequences.”
A thousand magic crystals happened to be within the range where people around him were reluctant to rob but wouldn’t be coveted by others after getting them. So the extortionist had carefully calculated the amount.
David, however, ignored them, knowing that they wouldn’t dare to act during the auction.
Faced with such adversity, David knew he couldn’t fight them alone, and he was pondering ways to break the deadlock. The best solution was to hire a powerful individual to escort him away. However, there weren’t many trustworthy powerful people in the wizard world. He couldn’t find any nearby.
He even considered asking the auction wizards for protection since being robbed here would reflect poorly on them. However, he knew his limits; the auction had already been generous enough to not pursue his rule-breaking. Asking for more help would be too much, and besides, he didn’t trust the ancient auction.
Feeling desperate but unable to come up with a solution, David suddenly smelled a faint fragrance. Puzzled, he turned his head to see a stunningly beautiful witch, surrounded by a rose illusion, approaching gracefully.
“You work at the Promi Alchemy Shop, right?” The witch asked with a smile.
Seeing such a beautiful witch asking him a question, David was momentarily stunned.
However, when he recognized her face, David immediately straightened up, maintaining a respectful demeanor. On his first day in the Savage Grottoes, he had seen her portrait. After joining the Promi Alchemy Shop, he had heard her name countless times.
—’Rose Crown’ Liana.
In front of Liana, David dared not show the slightest hint of frivolity.
It wasn’t until Liana stood in front of him that David remembered her previous question.
Stammering a bit, David said, “Lady Liana! I, I am indeed a clerk from the Promi Alchemy Shop.”
Liana nodded and glanced around, and everyone who had been watching with covetous eyes bowed their heads. Liana smiled and teased, “It seems you’re in quite a predicament.”
David scratched his head sheepishly, and suddenly a thought struck him… He couldn’t trust anyone else to help him, but Lady Liana was a renowned alchemist from the Savage Grottoes; she should be trustworthy, right? But would someone of her status and position be willing to work for him?
Hesitating, David wondered whether he should ask or not.
Before he could speak, Liana took the initiative and said, “In light of your previous attempt to answer the name of that piece of music, I’ll take you back. You’ll need a protective wizard for the long-range teleportation formation, won’t you?”
David looked incredulous, not expecting fortune to suddenly come his way, and quickly nodded in agreement.
Only after he agreed did he suddenly realize that the reason Liana’s voice sounded so familiar was that she was the very wizard who had been sitting in the VIP box back then!
“Let’s go; I need to return to the Savage Grottoes as well.” Liana didn’t say much more and turned to leave. David followed her closely.
The people around them exchanged glances and sighed helplessly. With an official wizard’s protection, their chances of stealing magic crystals from David were practically nonexistent. Moreover, from their conversation, it was clear that they were headed straight to the Savage Grottoes, making any further scheming even more impossible.
Seeing that no one around dared to follow, David finally breathed a sigh of relief.
As the malicious onlookers were left behind, a doubt arose in David’s mind. Why did Lady Liana take the initiative to help him leave? Was it just because he had answered the name of the music back then?
Obviously not, because he didn’t even know the name of the piano piece himself. David was a realist, and it didn’t take him long to deduce that Liana’s real interest was in Angel.
Having come to this conclusion, David didn’t expose it but quietly followed Liana. After all, he was merely basking in Angel’s reflected glory; it was best to keep a low profile.
The two of them, one in front and one behind, headed towards the teleportation formation deep in the desert.
The sandstorm had already filled the air when they arrived, and the wind showed no signs of weakening. If anything, it seemed to be intensifying. In their limited visibility, almost everything was a hazy yellow.
The fragrance surrounding Liana automatically shielded her from the sand and dust, but David beside her was not so fortunate. The yellow sand constantly struck his face, even blurring his vision and causing tears to well up in his eyes.
With his vision blurred by the sand, David thought for a moment and constructed a model in his mental space. After a while, a faint blue water membrane appeared around him, blocking the sand and dust from the outside world.
Liana noticed the water membrane as well. She discovered that the blue water membrane resembled a flowing liquid bubble. Sand poured in, quickly wrapped by the liquid inside, and with the help of the surrounding wind, it rolled down and merged with the ground. It seemed to have a purifying effect.
“Your spell seems to be an improved version of a cleansing spell that I haven’t seen before?” Liana asked curiously.
Liana had been silent the whole way, and her sudden question surprised David: “Yes, Lady Liana, this is a modified version of the cleansing spell, called the Aqua Shield Cleansing Spell. It was created by changing the arrangement of a few elements… However, it’s not necessarily an improvement, as it has limited uses and no other functions, only capable of creating a water shield that cleanses dirt.”
“Aqua Shield Cleansing Spell, quite a straightforward name,” Liana raised an eyebrow, and a hint of admiration flashed in her eyes for David’s modified spell. “Successfully transforming a spell that has been passed down for so many years into this effect is already an improvement. It seems you have a thorough understanding of the cleansing spell.”
David was stunned, not expecting his casual use of the spell to receive praise from Liana instead of ridicule.
He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but his face showed a hint of hesitation.
“Few apprentices are now dedicated to improving basic spells,” Liana praised generously. “You’ve done well in this aspect. Once you become an official wizard, you’ll realize how important understanding basic spells is.”
After a moment of contemplation, David whispered, “My Lady, you misunderstand. I didn’t improve this spell. Angel taught me this spell, and he’s the one who improved it.”
Liana paused, then shook her head in realization, “So it was him?”
“That makes sense. With Phantom Master’s insight, he would surely teach Angel this… However, I didn’t expect Angel’s alchemy skills to advance so rapidly in just a few years, even his analysis of basic spells has reached this level. Truly the most terrifying apprentice among the younger generation, in a few years, another Phantom Master will rise.”
After Liana finished her lament, she looked at David with newfound respect. He resisted the temptation to take advantage of a wizard’s favor, admitting the origin of the spell without trying to climb the social ladder. This kind of quality was a refreshing change in the murky world of wizards.
Liana took a rare, serious look at David. Suddenly, her gaze fell on the alchemical weapon in David’s hand.
“This alchemical weapon’s design is quite interesting. Did you craft it yourself?” Liana inquired.
David’s face soured as he continued shaking his head, “I crafted it, but the design of this curved sword was also taught to me by Angel…”
“I remember Angel specializes in enchantments, but your curved sword is based on alchemy spells. Even with Angel’s guidance, your subsequent research must have been done on your own, right?” With Liana’s alchemical expertise, she saw through the inner workings of the curved sword at a glance.
David nodded, “Yes, it took me a year to study and improve.”
“Can you tell me about your improvement process?” Liana asked.
David was somewhat surprised that Liana would inquire about the process, but he understood that this was an opportunity. Before him was a true alchemist, and if he could receive her guidance, his alchemy would undoubtedly make new leaps.
So, David went on and on about his own alchemy process, from ideas to implementation, to the difficulties he encountered in completing the final product and how he overcame them.
During this time, Liana did not interrupt him.
After a while, David finally stopped talking. Firstly, because the teleportation formation had arrived, and secondly, because he really had nothing more to say. He had recounted his entire alchemy journey, and if he continued, he would have to start fabricating.
“From your description, I can see your alchemy philosophy, and it’s quite impressive,” Liana’s evaluation was simple, but her words were sincere. She hadn’t expected that the young employee of the Promi Alchemy Shop, although not highly skilled in alchemy, had some alchemical ideas that she found quite agreeable.
David could also hear Liana’s praise, and his eyes flashed with delight.
“Keep going. If you can stick to your philosophy, you’ll eventually reach the goal you envision.” After a pause, Liana added, “If you have any doubts, feel free to find me in the Rose Garden.”