Escorting Yancey and Eunon out through the manor's heavy wrought-iron gates, Pierce bore a trace of a satisfied smile as he slowly returned to the spacious, quiet hall.
Having secured the continuous river of wealth that was the Resonance Potion, he had practically no need to fret over funding or logistical exhaustion before stepping into the massive meat grinder of the planar battlefield.
All the magic tattoo matrices had been fully analyzed within his mind, and the expensive casting materials had been gathered in their entirety. Tonight was the moment for the comprehensive sublimation of his physical vessel.
As deep night descended and his daily routine of profound meditation concluded, the cold moonlight spilled across the stone floor through the towering floor-to-ceiling windows. Pierce released his mental power without reservation, commencing the inscription of the magic tattoos.
The three major runic matrices—Blink, Sanctuary, and Thunderburst—were smoothly elevated to the tier of Medium-Grade Magic Tattoos, one after another, amidst a rich infusion of mana and shudder-inducing stinging pain.
Following that, he guided the faintly shimmering magical ink, stroke by stroke, branding a brand-new Energy Convergence rune into the musculature of his right leg.
As for the final, crucial Giant rune, Pierce chose to anchor it upon his left arm.
The slightly dark, complex totem, exuding an aura of ancient mystery, wound its way down from his broad shoulder, spreading like living vines until it reached the skin near his wrist. In everyday life, these marks would be properly concealed beneath the voluminous robes of a Wizard, rendering them difficult for outsiders to detect. However, once he entered a state of slaughter and donned more fitted, lightweight combat hunting attire, it would be inevitable that a fraction of the terrifying explosive power hidden within those lines would be revealed.
Fortunately, the fundamental attribute of the Giant rune was pure physical enhancement. Even if an astute enemy discerned its traces during a fierce battle, it would be of little consequence.
Five Medium-Grade magic tattoos. This was the absolute limit his current physique could endure.
Pierce lowered his head, carefully scrutinizing his metamorphosed body. Just moments ago, when the final Giant rune completely stabilized on his left arm and its magical radiance retracted, he could distinctly sense that the bearing capacity of every inch of his muscle and bone had approached its critical threshold. He could no longer accommodate even a single, lowest-grade magic tattoo.
Ultimately, his physical foundation was still not robust enough.
Pierce clenched his fists tightly, feeling the surging power between his knuckles. Stripped to his solid upper body, he stood directly in the slight chill of the night breeze and began the rigorous tempering of the Omniscient Breathing Technique. White steam soon rose from his pores, permeating the empty room.
In the days that followed, Pierce's trajectory returned to a state of extreme fulfillment, settling into an almost monotonous daily routine.
Aside from his unwavering daily deep meditation and breathing technique refinement, he poured all his energy into the crucible, concocting Resonance Potions.
Through the tireless promotion and maneuvering of Yancey and Eunon, the entire Wizarding class of the Inner City's eastern district soon learned of an exhilarating piece of news: the recently rising genius, Pierce, whose reputation was like the midday sun, was privately selling the precious Resonance Potions.
The news struck like a boulder thrown into a deep pool. Countless Wizards, desperate for a breakthrough, flocked to his door, waving Magic Stones as they scrambled to purchase this priceless resource. Even though Pierce had pushed his brewing efficiency to the absolute limit, his crucible boiling day and night, it still triggered a frenzy of severe shortages.
Ultimately, to avoid wasting his energy on unnecessary negotiations, he established a strict rule: a limit of one vial per visiting Wizard. Following that, he dumped the entirety of the tedious transaction affairs onto the water nymph, Nympha, while he retreated entirely behind the scenes, immersing himself completely in the elevation of his strength and the brewing of potions.
Whenever night fell and Nympha approached Pierce to report, holding that heavy dimensional pouch stuffed with Magic Stones, the sprite's slender hands would tremble uncontrollably. In her long yet lowly life, she had never witnessed such a colossal fortune of magical wealth, enough to pile into a mountain. Any single day's earnings here were enough to purchase a dozen, or even dozens, of rare sprites like herself on the planar slave markets.
Astral Calendar Year 14523, August 25th.
The flock of Nether Ravens, redeemed through the rewards of the Morning Star Council tournament, finally crossed the lengthy spatial transit and was delivered in full to the manor.
A full fifty-two pureblood Nether Ravens, exuding the decaying aura of death, held a total value that exceeded a staggering forty thousand Magic Stones. For any Formal Wizard who had just stepped into the First Tier, this was an absolute fortune capable of driving a man to desperate crimes. Yet, compared to the long-term political and resource benefits Pierce had secured by winning the tournament, this wealth seemed almost negligible.
As Pierce's original Mist Raven transformed into a bottomless black hole, devouring the fifty-two Nether Ravens entirely—flesh, bone, and soul—the familiar that had accompanied him all this way finally awakened that trace of the absolute purest power of death deep within its bloodline.
Although limited by the base number of entities devoured, it had not yet fully extracted and inherited the ultimate rhythm of death. But merely this seeping trace of the aura of death caused its absolute combat prowess to experience an explosive surge.
When fully channeling that sliver of cold death power, the Mist Raven's shriek and talons were now capable of effortlessly piercing the proud Mage Armor of a Tier 1 Gaseous-stage Wizard, tearing through it as easily as fragile parchment.
It was truly worthy of being a spell-like ability touching upon the authority of death; having barely scratched the surface, its displayed lethality was already this terrifying. A profound, dark light flashed in Pierce's eyes, his anticipation growing for the day his familiar would devour a sufficient quantity to attain the complete power of death.
"Omniscient Eye, scan my current physical and mental status."
The cold data of the Omniscient Eye immediately flowed down his retina.
Mental Energy Level: 13.67 Constitution Energy Level: 9.34
Watching the jumping data in his field of vision, Pierce exhaled a long breath of foul air.
More than a month had quietly passed since he crossed the heavenly chasm to advance to a Formal Wizard. Under this cost-blind infusion of resources, the gaseous mental power filling the interior of his mental crystal had finally crossed the forty percent mark.
Conversely, the body-tempering progress of the Omniscient Breathing Technique was advancing at a breakneck pace, several fractions faster than his initial deductions. Even though it had barely been a month since he stepped into the third layer, the surging blood energy and cellular vitality showed faint, roaring signs of touching the peak barrier of the third layer once again.
Pierce assessed the situation calmly; this was likely the physical feedback and benign resonance triggered by the rapid climb of his mental energy level. After all, looking across the entire multiverse, the number of extravagant Wizards who could use precious Medium and even High-Grade Resonance Potions like plain water for every single daily meditation session could likely be counted on one hand.
The logistical stockpile of Resonance Potions was also quite abundant now.
During this time, Pierce had brewed potions madly, like a tireless alchemical golem. Aside from liquidating all the mediocre Low-Grade potions for Magic Stones, every single drop of the refined Medium and perfect High-Grade potions was locked away in his private magical satchel for his own use.
Now, neatly stacked in the corner of that spatial ring were over ninety vials of Resonance Potions, shimmering with a mesmerizing luster. This strategic reserve was enough for him to squander without restraint for more than three months.
All tactical preparations were in order; it was time to depart for the Plane of Turin.
Pierce's eyes flickered, his gaze seemingly piercing through the solid walls to look into the boundless depths of the Astral Realm. From the very day he advanced to Wizard, he had been like a tightly wound, precision gear, unceasingly making the most rigorous preparations to step onto the meat grinder that was the planar battlefield. Now, with his trump cards secured and all matters settled, he was ready to depart to meet the blood and fire at any moment.
However, before stepping into the teleportation array, there were a few old acquaintances he needed to see.
Walking out of the cold, hard spell laboratory, Pierce summoned Nympha, instructing her in a serious tone to strictly oversee every defensive array in the manor. Afterward, he strolled to the vibrant flowerbed in the backyard, finding Eve playing with the butterflies. With a gentle wave, he had the reluctant little flower sprite fly back to her fairy cottage.
With the massive manor losing his high-tier combat presence, leaving the little creature here alone was something he could not fully be at ease with, no matter what.
Upon learning they would be leaving the comfortable and pleasant life of the manor for a while, Eve immediately lowered her crystalline eyes, appearing quite reluctant. After all, living like a lord—being fed nectar by wood elves and having her wings groomed by dry-leaf sprites every day—was simply the ultimate dream for a fairy. However, caught between extravagant luxury and loyally following Pierce, the little creature hesitated for only half a second before firmly choosing the latter.
Leaving the manor, Pierce boarded an unassuming carriage. With the clatter of hooves, he headed straight for the most bustling commercial district of the Inner City.
In a core hub like the Inner City of the Ring of Truth, where high-tier Wizards gathered and resources converged, there was naturally no shortage of Dark Wells providing cross-planar communication services. In the shadowy alleys of the commercial district stood many quiet shops exclusively renting private Dark Wells to Wizards. The Dark Stones that were hyped to exorbitant prices in the Outer City—often impossible to procure even with wealth—were nothing more than clearly priced, readily available standard consumables on the shelves here.
Pushing open the heavy wooden door of an establishment bearing the mottled sign "Otherworld Inn," Pierce approached the counter. With a flick of his finger, ten Magic Stones, refracting a tantalizing luster, landed precisely on the smooth walnut countertop.
"Prepare a private Dark Well, a two-hour rental, plus an allocation of one Dark Stone."
The drowsy attendant behind the counter caught sight of the flawless white robe—the symbol of status and destruction—and his body instantly snapped taut as if struck by lightning. He dared not show the slightest negligence, processing the expensive voucher with extreme dexterity before respectfully presenting a brass room key laced with a magic ward using both hands.
Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
The internal architecture of this inn prioritized privacy to the utmost degree. All Dark Wells were physically isolated by thick, soundproof magical walls, with each hidden chamber equipped with only a single deep well. Pierce felt highly satisfied with this airtight level of secrecy. In this way, when conducting highly lucrative cross-planar material exchanges, the possibility of idle onlookers spying on the traded goods and bringing about unforeseen disasters was completely eliminated.
Stepping into the secret chamber, Pierce stood before the Dark Well, which radiated a faint, cold chill. He closed his eyes and expertly triggered the faint aura imprint etched deep within his soul, beginning his attempt to cross the endless barriers of the Astral Realm to call upon the cervine maiden, Tining.
Identical to the last occasion, after a brief delay of less than half a minute, the soul echo of the cervine maiden, bearing obvious joy, transmitted from the void.
As the Dark Stone fell to the bottom of the well, stirring up pitch-black ripples, the originally dead surface rolled and restructured like quicksilver. Soon, an image reflecting verdant ancient trees and dappled sunlight surfaced, and Tining's elegant, ethereal figure came clearly into view.
"Pierce, you finally responded! There hasn't been a single trace of movement for so long; I thought you had met with some misfortune in that perilous world!"
Finally seeing Pierce's face clearly, Tining acted exceptionally excited. The exquisitely crafted antlers atop her head swayed gently in the breeze, matching her cheerful tone.
However, halfway through her joyful words, she abruptly stopped like a startled forest deer. She tilted her head slightly, leaning closer to the image, a touch of ill-concealed confusion and hesitation appearing on her stunning face.
"Could it be an illusion caused by the cross-planar projection? Why do I feel that the life aura and energy fluctuations surrounding you have undergone a massive, shudder-inducing transformation?"
Pierce's eyebrow twitched imperceptibly. Was the Ancient Tree Deer Spirit clan's innate talent for sensing biological magnetic fields truly sharp to such an unreasonable degree? Even separated by the World's Eye across countless crystal spheres, she could instinctively smell the fundamental difference in him after his life ascension?
Pierce did not conceal the truth, stating a fact with a flat tone. "I have just crossed the boundary of an apprentice. I am now a Formal Wizard."
Tining was visibly stunned for a moment. Immediately after, those eyes, as clear as a forest spring, were instantly illuminated by immense surprise.
"You've truly become a Formal Wizard?! Heavens, that is simply incredible! I am sincerely proud of you. Congratulations, Pierce!"
A joyous smile, more brilliant than spring blossoms, bloomed on the cervine maiden's cheeks. The pure sincerity and delight were without impurity; anyone could see she was happy for Pierce's achievement from the very depths of her soul.
"Thank you for your blessings," Pierce smiled and nodded in acknowledgment, before swiftly changing the subject and cutting to the chase. "Let us proceed directly to the trade. This time, I have brought an extremely substantial quantity of Radiant Moon Orchids for you and your clan."
Tears of excitement welled up in Tining's eyes, and her voice involuntarily pitched an octave higher. "Truly? How many stalks did you manage to gather this time?"
"A full three thousand stalks," Pierce calmly stated a number capable of driving the entire Deer Spirit tribe into a frenzy.
Tining was utterly dumbstruck by the exaggerated figure. She stood rooted to the spot like a wooden chicken, taking a long while to break free from the extreme shock. Her eyes widened, and she even began to stutter, "Th... Three thousand stalks?!"
"That is correct. Three thousand stalks." Pierce smiled, providing the most resolute confirmation.
Based on Aurora City's market prices, this mountain of Radiant Moon Orchids cost, at absolute most, eighteen thousand Magic Stones. During these past days, solely through dumping his monopoly of high-quality Resonance Potions, he had madly amassed over thirty thousand Magic Stones in a very short period. Diverting half his cash flow to complete this purchase was a trifling matter for his current financial strength.
Receiving Pierce's absolute confirmation once more, Tining's elegant face was instantly overwhelmed by indescribable ecstasy. She was so thrilled she couldn't stand still; her four long, powerful hooves restlessly trod back and forth on the grass, producing crisp sounds, while the antlers on her head swayed incessantly with her heavy breathing.
After a good while, she barely managed to force down the excitement that threatened to spill from her chest. She took a deep breath of the earth-scented air, her pair of eyes—clear as emerald gems—locking fixedly onto Pierce across the Dark Well. Her expression was as solemn as if she were reciting a sacred vow. "Thank you, Pierce. You shall forever be the most honored, most loyal friend to our clan!"
Looking at that pure, sincere, and exquisite face in the mirror—untainted by the slightest speck of mortal dust—Pierce's heart, long tempered as cold and hard as iron by the cruel laws of the Wizard World, unprecedentedly birthed a faint, almost imperceptible trace of guilt. After all, he knew better than anyone that his enthusiastic and generous provision of three thousand Radiant Moon Orchids was entirely due to the massive profits hidden within this information asymmetry.
However, this brief pang of guilt vanished as quickly as it came. Pierce instantly reverted to his stoic, profiteering nature, responding with a smile. "I am glad I could be of assistance."
"But of course!" Tining nodded forcefully. "This will be of immeasurable aid to the continuation of our lineage."
"Right, will you also need to purchase the magical creature materials we've harvested, in large quantities like last time?"
Pierce shook his head, laying out his core demand. "This time, I wish to convert all of it into Magic Oak Seeds."
Upon hearing this, Tining immediately reached out with a pale, slender finger and somewhat awkwardly scratched her cheek. She lowered her eyes, speaking softly with deep apology. "I am truly sorry, Pierce... I only possess twenty-three mature Magic Oak Seeds on my end."
In the cross-planar trade agreement they had initially established, one Magic Oak Seed was valued at one hundred Radiant Moon Orchids. Therefore, the three thousand Radiant Moon Orchids Pierce had brought required a full thirty Magic Oak Seeds to balance the ledger.
"Since the quantity is insufficient, do you have any other similar items available?" Pierce frankly explained his situation. "I will be heading to the planar battlefield next, and I require some trump cards for self-defense."
Hearing the words "planar battlefield," the joy on Tining's face vanished instantly, replaced by intense worry and reluctance. The worry naturally stemmed from fearing he would encounter danger; the reluctance arose because his departure might mean they wouldn't see each other for months or even years, forcing their trade to halt.
Suppressing her complicated emotions, Tining thought for a moment before her expression suddenly shifted. Hurriedly dropping a "Wait for me," she turned around, her four hooves clopping as she galloped out of the frame's view.
It wasn't long before she trotted back, displaying an object to Pierce as if presenting a treasure. It was a shriveled, wrinkled seed that looked remarkably like a dead thorn pod.
"It's this. A Battlefield Heather seed."
"Battlefield Heather?"
Pierce quickly searched through his mind, yet despite his breadth of knowledge, he found absolutely no recollection of such a thing.
"Is this some kind of magical creature?" Pierce inquired.
Tining explained, "Strictly speaking, the Battlefield Heather is an extremely ancient and brutal magical plant. It is said to be a pure instrument of war, created in the primordial era specifically for battle. I only obtained it by chance from the ruins of a secret realm."
Hearing it was a creature engineered specifically for war instantly piqued Pierce's interest. He asked in a low voice, "How is its combat prowess?"
"Extremely strong!" Tining deliberately emphasized her tone. "In open fields or plains, a single Battlefield Heather could easily slaughter a five-man squad of mid-tier Silver warriors. If placed in its element within a jungle environment, even a powerful high-tier Silver warrior could not hope to defeat one."
Pierce was immediately overjoyed. A mid-tier Silver corresponded exactly to a Tier 2 Legendary Knight. A high-tier Silver corresponded to a Tier 3 Legendary Knight. According to Tining's description, the absolute lethality of the Battlefield Heather had undoubtedly reached the level of a Tier 3 Legend.
"However, the Battlefield Heather also possesses considerable flaws," Tining suddenly added.
Pierce paused. "What flaws?"
The cervine maiden seemed to recall some unbearable memory, adopting a look of extreme disgust as she complained. "Its intellect is abysmal; it isn't smart in the slightest. It completely cannot comprehend human speech. When it fights, it simply devolves into a lunatic, charging recklessly in straight lines. Furthermore, its destructive urges are extremely twisted. After killing its enemies, it will continue to wreck everything in sight. It requires a tremendous amount of effort to suppress it back into its seed form."
Seeing the resentment on Tining's face, it was evident she had suffered quite a bit at the hands of this frenzied plant in the past.
Yet, Pierce didn't care in the slightest. Compared to a violent output capable of instantly tearing apart a Tier 3 Legend, the side effect of poor friend-or-foe identification and difficult retrieval was entirely acceptable.
"This is quite good. I'll take it. How do you propose we trade?"
Tining's eyes filled with anticipation as she said, "I will trade this Battlefield Heather seed, along with the twenty-three Magic Oak Seeds, in exchange for your three thousand Radiant Moon Orchids. Would that be acceptable?"
Pierce smiled and nodded without hesitation.
"It is."
The deal was struck, leaving both parties highly satisfied. The two immediately began drafting the transaction array.
As the array's light flared, the towering, stacked mounds of Radiant Moon Orchids vanished instantly, replaced by twenty-four seeds.
Pierce nimbly collected the seeds, stepping toward the well's edge as he spoke to Tining. "It will likely be a very long time before we meet again. Take care of yourself."
"And you as well." Tining exhorted with a serious expression. "The planar battlefield is treacherous. You must ensure your safety!"
Emerging from the Otherworld Inn, Pierce rode non-stop, heading straight to The Spire Academy to bid farewell to Master Morven.
Master Morven did not indulge in any lengthy, hypocritical pleasantries. The weathered, old-school Wizard merely tossed him a scroll, dropped a heavy "Stay safe," and waved him away.
It wasn't until Pierce had exited the forest cabin and lowered his head to closely inspect the scroll that a flash of extreme shock uncontrollably crossed his eyes. This was actually a one-way, directional teleportation scroll engraved with incredibly high-order spatial laws!
As long as a spatial anchor was planted in an absolutely safe coordinate beforehand, then in any future desperate situation—regardless of how perilous the environment—activating the scroll would instantly fold space, teleporting the user back to the anchor's location. The prerequisite, of course, was that they must reside within the same unified planar coordinate system. Only the legendary cross-planar teleportation scrolls could bypass the barriers of crystal spheres.
Yet, this remained a top-tier life-saving artifact, precious enough to trigger bloodshed. If tossed into an underworld auction house, the starting bid would easily breach the terrifying threshold of ten thousand Magic Stones. In critical moments, this item was absolutely equivalent to a spellcaster's precious second life.
A faint warmth touched Pierce's heart. This old Wizard, who rarely ever smiled, had offered him a weighty life insurance policy in the most practical and expensive manner possible.
When Pierce stepped out of the imposing gates of The Spire Academy, his two exclusive knights, Sophia and Payne, were already waiting outside like two iron towers, having been there for quite some time.
Upon receiving Pierce's encrypted missive, the two had immediately dropped all miscellaneous duties and hurried over. Seeing them clad in superior, enchanted heavy armor, it was clear they were absolutely prepared to spill their blood for their lord upon the planar battlefield.
Pierce activated the Omniscient Eye to probe them, clearly capturing the surging, qualitative change in the life force within their bodies. Exactly as he had anticipated, both Sophia and Payne had successfully shattered the barrier of their life echelon, both stepping into the realm of Legendary Knights.
Within the depths of Sophia's bloodline, the powers of the Fire and Wind elements had awakened and were now flowing steadily. Meanwhile, the burly Payne had awakened to the powers of the Earth and Lightning elements.
'As expected. Mortals who force their way through the barrier using the Omniscient Breathing Technique will, without exception, shatter convention and awaken a dual-element resonance upon crossing the legendary threshold,' Pierce mused inwardly.
It was worth noting that Sophia's Constitution attribute stood at an energy level of 2.03. Payne's was slightly higher, reaching 2.25.
To be frank, such strength—newly minted in the legendary realm—was far from powerful in the eyes of Pierce, who could trigger localized natural disasters with a wave of his hand. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to describe them as intolerably weak. The physical destruction they could inflict was likely inferior to an Oak Guardian that had just torn itself from the soil.
Yet, he did not mind. A Wizard did not recruit followers for the sake of coveting their absolute combat prowess. After all, no matter how strong a follower's mortal shell became, could it ever surpass the Wizard who wielded the very laws of the universe? Recruiting them was for the sake of having personnel to manage mundane affairs, and to clear out the bottom-tier rabble that were unworthy of a Wizard expending mana to crush.
Therefore, as long as their strength met the passing grade, they were competent enough. Taking a step back, even if Sophia and Payne were weak at this moment, as they continued to deeply cultivate the Omniscient Breathing Technique, their rate of advancement would absolutely drive ordinary Legendary Knights to despair. The fact that their constitutions had both breached the 2.0 milestone barely a month after advancing was the greatest proof.
Sooner or later, when these two blades truly tasted blood and sharpened themselves on the planar battlefield, they would similarly mature into terrifying entities that other Legendary Knights could only look up to on their knees.
Looking at his two knights bowing to pledge their fealty, Pierce's gaze turned as cold and hard as a blade. Pointing his gaze far beyond the skyline of Aurora City into the endless void, he issued an undeniable command.
"Depart. Destination: The Plane of Turin."
