The wizard starts by trimming the donkey's hooves

Chapter 377 Metal Cage
Ryan quickly found the skill icon of Ironheart on the Warhammer Wizard (Legend) profession panel and checked the changes in the description.

The new expression is as follows:

Iron Heart Advanced Meditation Level 4 (1/1000), with the special effect of 'Metal Mastery Level 2'.

[Metal Control Level 2 (Passive) Effect: Your ability to control metal energy particles is slightly improved.]

"The first level, does it correspond to lv1~lv3?"

"In this case, the second level should correspond to lv4~lv6."

"Also, the level 2 metal control, the system description has changed from 'slightly improved' to 'slightly improved'."

Although Ryan didn't know how long it would take for other second-level liquefied wizards in the school to learn the second level of the Iron Heart Advanced Meditation Method, it was impossible for them to learn it within a few hours.

"It's a pity that this kind of happiness cannot be shared with others." Ryan shook his head and sighed.

In addition to being delighted, Ryan quickly focused his attention on the thickened base in his spiritual sea.

"It has become thicker. Because of this, the power of metal magic has been further enhanced."

"I can try out some witchcraft myself later and compare the power increase."

At the same time, Ryan also discovered that around the crystal of the sea of ​​consciousness, the volume of the silver liquid after the liquefaction of mental power seemed to have increased slightly, but the volume of the silver mist seemed to have decreased.

After taking a look at the system panel, Ryan was slightly stunned.

I saw that the mental power value on the attribute panel was actually lower than when I practiced the first level last time.

It clearly shows: "Spirit: 88 (liquefaction 32%)"

You know, before he added points, his mental strength was 90 points, and after adding another 3 points, it should be 93 points, but now it is only 88 points, a full 5 points less.

However, the liquefaction progress increased by 2%, from 30% to 32%.

"It should still be the advanced meditation method that further refines the mental power and eliminates impurities."

With the experience from last time, Ryan was not too surprised this time.

After thinking about it, Ryan invested 4 skill points in the lv2 Iron Heart Advanced Meditation Method.

As the Iron Heart advanced meditation method moved from level 4 to level 6, instantly, a memory of practicing the second level of Iron Heart flooded into Ryan's mind.

In an instant, Ryan seemed to be in a mysterious space, undergoing decades of hard practice in the second level of meditation.

A few minutes later, when Ryan was outlining the second-level meditation model again, he was pleasantly surprised to find that the visualization process was much smoother than before, and nearly three times faster!
After a little thought, although he knew that he had reached the upper limit, he was still excited and wanted to try.
Sure enough, the system prompt suddenly appeared:
[Adding points failed! The current limit of the Heart of Steel Advanced Meditation has been reached. ]

However, this was expected. Ryan was not depressed at all. After thinking about it, he decided to report to the Sword Bearer headquarters early tomorrow morning.

There are two reasons. First, the one-month deadline is not far away.

Ryan felt it was inappropriate to wait until the last day or two.

Secondly, considering the redemption hall at the Sword Bearer headquarters, there should be quite a few sorcery and items available for redemption.

For example, rare metal witchcraft.

Maybe it can also be exchanged for soul energy crystals.

The reward he received for killing the three giants of the Poseidon Cult in Howling Fjord last time has not yet been redeemed. If the projection investigation report of the Goddess of the Underworld is taken into account, he should be able to get a very considerable reward.

In other words, the number of his mission evaluation medals and merit points should be enough to redeem one or even several metal-based witchcrafts.

In contrast, if he wants to exchange witchcraft from the school, he will have to accumulate a lot of contribution points.

This is not something that can be accomplished in a short period of time.

Because it is different from the Iron Heart Advanced Meditation Method, the exchange price of witchcraft, especially the second-level witchcraft, at the school starts from thousands of contribution points.

If Ryan wanted to earn enough contribution points just by making puppet parts, even if he took over all the metal work and gave it to him alone, it would not be enough.

Most likely, he will have to go on an overseas combat or garrison mission to have a chance to accumulate enough contribution points.

The next morning.

Ryan rode in the Bavarian family's luxurious carriage and soon arrived at the Sword Bearer headquarters.

As soon as Ryan got off the carriage, he was attracted by the magnificent momentum of the headquarters' main entrance.

In the center of the main entrance, there is an elliptical fountain and a tall bronze statue of a man standing over ten meters high with swords in both hands. He has a resolute face and looks into the distance, looking lifelike.

Behind it was an extremely spacious gate, at the door stood eight guards holding swords and shields and wearing full plate armor.

And from Ryan's perception and clear feedback, these guards all had the strength of third-level knight squires.

The only thing missing from entering the transcendental realm is an opportunity, a chance to obtain the magic potion.

There is no house number and no written description.

"interesting."

Ryan nodded slightly and walked towards the door.

"Sir, this is the headquarters of the Imperial Sword Bearers." A guard stepped forward and said, his words were quite polite because he could see that Ryan got off a luxurious carriage.

Although he was not familiar with the Bavarian family emblem of the Serpent Shield, it seemed to be the family emblem of a certain duke.

"Well, this is my official letter, I'm here to report." Ryan simply showed the transfer letter.

The captain of the guard didn't care much about it at first. After all, almost every one or two days, there would be a Magic Iron-level Sword Bearer from the provincial branches reporting to the Sword Bearer Headquarters.

However, this time is different.

As soon as he took a quick glance, he saw the words "Platinum-level Swordsman" written on it, which made the captain of the guards tremble in his heart.

The captain of the guards' expression suddenly changed. He stood at attention and saluted Ryan.

"Lord Ryan!"

Ryan waved his hand and said, "If we report, where should we go?"

"Gavin! Accompany Lord Ryan to report to the reception desk of the administrative building immediately." The captain of the guard shouted, and soon, a capable guard came running over.

"As you command, Captain. Lord Ryan, this way."

"Thank you!"

However, what Ryan didn't notice was that among the eight guards at the door, one of them had a flash of light in his eyes when he heard Ryan's name.

Half an hour later.

In the Sword Bearer Headquarters, inside a Mithril-level Sword Bearer suite.

"Master Greenwood, someone from our family just told me that the young man named Ryan has arrived at the headquarters."

"Huh? Finally here!" Greenwood's face lit up with joy. He had been waiting for Ryan for many days.

"Have Mia, Nathan, and Chandler come over right now."

A quarter of an hour later.

A woman, about 26 or 27 years old, wearing a slim-fitting aristocratic hunting suit, with a hot body and bright red lipstick, walked into the room chatting with two elegant-looking aristocratic men.

When not on duty at headquarters, most sword bearers dress casually.

All three were members of Greenwood’s circle, and the one with the lowest family status was Chandler, but he was also the second son of the Earl of Imperial City.

Not that Greenwood’s social circle is that large.

Rather, these people are from the imperial capital's aristocratic circle, and they happen to work at the Sword Bearer Headquarters, and he is the leader.

Of course, there were noble descendants of higher status than him in the headquarters, but Greenwood could not command them. Instead, he had to visit them in person and ask them to do things for him.

"That person is here."

"Oh? Is it the young adamantium-level swordsman who injured you last time?" Mia, the only woman present, had her eyes slightly lit up. She was quite interested in Ryan, who had injured Greenwood.

"Is it the one named Ryan?" Nathan also asked.

"Yes."

"Then let's follow the plan. We will let him know that it's not easy to get around in the imperial capital." Chandler, who looked like a gentleman, shook the red Bordeaux liquid in his hand and said with a smile.

"Mia, you and Chandler should take the initiative to contact each other and try. It would be best if you can gain their trust," said Greenwood.

"Hehe, no problem. The other party is at the reception desk in the administrative building now, right? Chandler, then let's go and meet Mr. Ryan by chance." Mia giggled.

Reception of the Administration Building.

Due to Ryan's identity as a fine gold sword bearer, the reception was personally handled by Director Anthony, a middle-aged man with slicked back hair.

"Mr. Ryan, due to your outstanding performance in the Marne Province, you cleared out the Poseidon stronghold in the Howling Fjord and killed three legendary cult masters and quasi-legendary cult masters. You have been awarded a total of three Mithril Medals and 16,500 Merit Points."

"Oh, there's one more thing." Anthony, the director of the reception desk, opened his narrowed eyes suddenly and said.

On the wisdom slate in front of him, there were the words "top secret" clearly written on it. A long section of content was invisible, and only the final reward amount could be seen.

"Also, you have provided some top-secret intelligence, so I will reward you with a fine gold medal and 10,000 merit points."

"So, Lord Ryan, you will receive a total of one adamantine medal and three mithril medals this time, plus 26,500 merit points."

"I wonder if you have any objection to this?" Anthony, the director of the reception desk, said with a smile.

Ryan raised his eyebrows and felt happy.

He had thought that information about Hela, the goddess of the underworld, would be more important, but he didn't expect it to be so valuable.

In fact, it has exceeded the reward he received for annihilating the three giants of the Poseidon Cult.

Sure enough, nothing is trivial when it comes to matters concerning the gods.

"Of course not, thank you, Sir Anthony." Ryan bowed slightly to express his gratitude.

At this time, a female employee came over quickly.

She was holding a tray, and on the tray was a golden round emblem that was half the size of a palm.

Ryan picked up the fine gold badge on the tray and handed the diamond star badge to the female staff.

On the front of the heavy refined gold emblem was a lifelike image of a knight standing with a sword in his hand. With Ryan's knowledge of metals, he naturally knew that the emblem was made of precious refined gold.

But compared to the honor and authority represented by this emblem, the refined gold itself is not worth mentioning.

"Do you need to arrange for someone to accompany Lord Ryan to familiarize himself with the environment?" Anthony, director of the reception desk, said with a smile.

"No need, I can just walk around and take a look by myself." Ryan smiled and declined.

"Well, Sir Ryan, you can come to me at headquarters if you have any questions."

"Thank you. Goodbye, Mr. Anthony."

A few minutes later, Ryan left the reception area.

He always felt that the smile of Anthony, the director of the reception office, was very hypocritical, which gave him a bad impression. But perhaps this was a common problem among the imperial bureaucrats, Ryan shook his head slightly and didn't care.

Soon, he followed the signs on the road and arrived at the exchange hall of the headquarters.

After all, Ryan was still looking forward to higher-level witchcraft and the soul energy crystals that might be exchanged.

After walking along the long corridor and making many turns, Ryan arrived at the special item exchange hall of the headquarters, in front of a three-story building with a white marble facade.

The style of the building is similar to the Baroque architecture of Ryan's previous life.

It has round columns, the walls are concave and convex, and there are many patterns and relief decorations, which makes it look grand and exquisite.

When Ryan walked into the exchange hall, he found that the hall was designed with a vaulted ceiling and a high ceiling, making it look extremely spacious. The number of people coming and going inside was more than four or five times that of the Münster branch.

At this moment, there were many people queuing in front of every counter in the hall. In addition, the black smart stone slab in front of the counter was larger and looked more upscale than the branch.

It didn't take long before it was Ryan's turn.

A young female employee stood up and said with a smile, "Hello, sir, how can I help you?"

"I want to check all the metal witchcraft in the headquarters." As he said this, Ryan handed his freshly made fine gold badge to the other party.

"Okay, my lord."

"Ah, the fine gold emblem!" the young female employee exclaimed, obviously very surprised.

After a moment of hesitation, the young female employee quickly and respectfully took it with both hands and placed the fine gold badge into the special groove.

"Sir, since you have the highest authority, you can view all redeemable items at the headquarters. Currently, I have found a total of four items regarding metal witchcraft. Sir, please look at the wisdom tablet." said the young female staff member.

As the girl finished speaking, dense white characters appeared on the black stone slab in front of Ryan:

"Sharpness: Level 0 witchcraft, consumes a certain amount of mental energy, uses a specific witchcraft model to attract the surrounding metal energy particles, making the designated metal weapon sharper, and lasts for about one minute.

Exchange Price"

"Metal Barrier: Level 1 witchcraft, consumes a certain amount of mental energy, drives a certain amount of metal pieces with a specific witchcraft model, floats within a two-meter range around the caster, and blocks any attack that intends to harm the caster.

Exchange Price"

Because Ryan had learned these two a long time ago.

Ryan naturally skipped over them quickly and focused his attention on the last two.

"Metal Cage: Level 2 witchcraft, consumes a certain amount of mental energy, uses a specific witchcraft model to attract the surrounding metal energy particles, and quickly forms a metal cage around the single target.

Exchange price: 2 Mithril Medals plus 15000 Merit Points.

Source: Harsh ruins. ”

“Iron Ball of Thorns: Level 3 witchcraft, consumes a certain amount of mental power, uses a specific witchcraft model to attract the surrounding metal energy particles, forming a giant iron ball of thorns, and crushing the target.

Exchange price: 3 adamantium medals plus 27000 merit points.

Source: Olson Farthing. ”

Seeing the above content, Ryan's eyes suddenly lit up.

Although compared with other types of witchcraft, the number of metal-related witchcraft is still pitifully small even in the Sword Bearer Headquarters, but there are second-level and third-level witchcraft, which makes Lei quite satisfied.

The second-level sorcery 'Metal Cage', judging from the description, is actually a rare control-oriented metal-based sorcery.

Moreover, he has met the requirements for redemption of mission evaluation medals and merit points.

In other words, he can redeem it at any time.

As for the third-level witchcraft 'Iron Ball of Thorns', there is no rush. Not to mention that Ryan currently does not have enough medals. Even if he gets them, he is only a second-level liquefied wizard and cannot learn the third-level witchcraft.

So, Ryan looked at the description of the second-level witchcraft "Metal Cage" again and nodded slightly.

Even if the enemy can break free from this move, as long as it can be delayed for a moment, given Ryan's speed, it is very likely that the situation will be reversed.

"Help me exchange for the metal cage."

"Okay, my lord."

"By the way, is there any soul energy crystal to exchange for?"

"Yes, Lord Ryan, the exchange price for the soul energy crystal is 1 Diamond Star Mission Evaluation Medal, plus 2000 merit points."

Huh? Do I need an evaluation badge?
As expected, it is expensive.

In this way, his Mithril Medal can be exchanged for 9 Diamond Star Medals. Together with the remaining 2 Diamond Star Medals, he can exchange for 11 Soul Energy Crystals at one time.

"Use the Mithril Medal to exchange for 11 Soul Energy Crystals for me."

"Ah? Sir, are you sure you want to exchange the Mithril Medal for a lower-level medal?" the female employee couldn't help but remind.

You should know that the Mithril Medal is very difficult to obtain. Even in the Sword Bearer Headquarters, there are very few people who do this.

"Ah."

"Okay, my lord."

Soon, Ryan left the exchange hall with a satisfied parchment roll and a wooden box.

Five minutes later, Mia and Chandler hurried to the exchange hall. Chandler came forward and chatted with several female staff members. Then he came back and said:

"They said a tall, unfamiliar young man had just left."

"So fast?" Mia was a little speechless. She and Chandler had just rushed over from the reception desk of the administrative building.

I didn't expect Ryan to be so efficient. He left in less than ten minutes.

"Let's go and look for it again!" Mia walked out of the hall angrily.

Half an hour later.

"I'm so angry! After Ryan left the reception desk, he went straight to the exchange hall, exchanged something, and then left."

"Later I asked the guard and he said he had left the headquarters," Mia said angrily.

She also put on exquisite makeup and sprayed the expensive Royal No. 5 perfume.

This is a top-notch perfume that blends the complex fragrance of rosemary, rose and jasmine, but Mia usually doesn't want to use it.

Because for a wizard with strong mental power like Ryan, any witchcraft that confuses the mind is a taboo. Once it fails, the consequences can be imagined.

"It's normal. A country guy like him comes to the imperial capital, especially when he knows there are so many good things in the headquarters. How can he resist not exchanging them?" Nathan said with a smile.

Although he came from a good family, being the second son of the Marquis of the Imperial Capital, he could not help but salivate over the special items that could be exchanged after joining the Sword Bearer Headquarters.

Even though he came from a Marquis family, it was extremely difficult to get some things from the headquarters.

"By the way, Chandler, the opponent just arrived and should not have many merit points. Do you know what he has changed?" Nathan asked curiously.

Chandler is handsome and elegant, and is usually familiar with many female employees at the headquarters.

"I don't know the details, but what the other party is holding seems to be a parchment scroll. It should be either extraordinary combat skills or witchcraft." Chandler said after a brief recollection.

Chandler's answer surprised Nathan.

"Huh? These two items are not cheap. Could it be that the other party has accumulated a lot of mission evaluation medals and merit points in the original branch?" Nathan looked puzzled.

“But that’s not right either.”

"Don't guess. The other party single-handedly wiped out the Poseidon stronghold in Howling Fjord last time. Naturally, he has no shortage of medals and points." Greenwood said in a deep voice.

When he heard that Ryan wanted to exchange for witchcraft or combat skills, he immediately had a bad feeling.

No!

We can’t let the other side continue to increase its strength. It seems we have to speed up our action plan.

"Stronghold? But even if you kill a legendary cult leader, the reward won't be that much, right?" Chandler was stunned.

His Mithril-level team also worked together to kill an enemy cult legend in the last mission.

"There are three Poseidon legends in the stronghold." Speaking of this, Greenwood's expression became increasingly ugly.

Not long after he returned to the imperial capital, he heard the news from his butler Owen.

His first reaction was disbelief. He thought this was impossible. How could the other party be so strong?
The last time he fought against Ryan, although he lost, he thought that the gap was not that big.

But what does it mean to be able to kill three cult legends in one battle?
But the butler Owen said that this was told to the Duke personally by a senior official at the Sword Bearer headquarters when the Duke had dinner with him, and the information was absolutely reliable.

"What?! So strong?!" Several people turned their heads with horror on their faces, and immediately understood why Greenwood attached so much importance to him.

"This is difficult to handle. Do you know what the other party is good at?"

"He is good at metal-related witchcraft. At the same time, he is proficient in many extraordinary combat skills and has no obvious weaknesses. However, his attainments in witchcraft should be stronger than close combat." Greenwood said, touching the finger he had just treated.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but although he had recovered as before, he often felt a dull pain in his fingers, which made him hate Ryan even more.

"Metal wizard? This is quite rare." Mia raised her eyebrows and said.

"But you don't have to worry about this. As long as you get in touch with this Ryan and gain a certain amount of trust from him, that will be enough." Greenwood waved his hand and said.

"By the way, the other party hasn't recruited any members yet. I think it won't be long before this Ryan will recruit some members. You guys spread the word that this Ryan was promoted to the adamantium-level swordsman by luck."

"Good idea. At headquarters, no one will risk their lives to join a team whose captain is not strong enough." Nathan nodded with a smile.

"When that happens, you will take the initiative to join the other team."

"I understand. When the other party is out on a mission, we will deliberately leak his whereabouts or information to kill him," Chandler said with his eyes lighting up.

"No, it's to die for the country!" Greenwood couldn't help laughing and said.

"I will have the family make arrangements for the specific assignment, and will choose the highest difficulty level among the gold-level ones for him. Of course, don't worry, I will have the family send strong men to stand by, and after this Ryan dies, we can continue to complete the mission."

"Haha, what a well-thought-out strategy!" Mia's beautiful eyes narrowed into slits when she heard it.

"Haha, I told you, I'll let him know what a wealthy family is!"

"Small town youth like him who thinks he has some talent but is ignorant of the immensity of the world should just go back to the countryside." Greenwood moved his fingers, which were still not particularly flexible, and said bitterly.

He had read Ryan's information and naturally knew that the other party came from a place called Shining Gold Town.

Some time ago, he even sent people to that place to investigate, wanting to know how this guy Ryan grew up.

As a result, the investigation came to nothing after almost all the original residents of the town of Shining Gold were killed or injured after being attacked by the Black Flame Cult last year.

"Wait, there is another problem here. According to the regulations, the assigned mission of the adamantium-level sword bearer is only once every three months. If you have completed a mission of the same level, you can postpone it."

"That means it will take the other party up to three months to complete the mission?" Chandler suddenly frowned and said.

"No, he has been getting into our rhythm since he reported today."

"Soon, he will go out to complete the assigned task." Greenwood smiled confidently.

(End of this chapter)