The wizard starts by trimming the donkey's hooves

Chapter 413 Teleportation and Mutation
"Jennifer, why don't you stay in the imperial capital and let someone else take care of Minster."

The beautiful woman smiled and said, "My dear, I know you are thinking about my safety. However, although the situation in Munster is turbulent, business is much better than before."

"Besides, I will not leave the city of Munster. You have arranged the Ice Claw Bear Mercenary Group for me. I will be safe in the short term."

"Besides, if I stay in the imperial capital, what can I do?"

After thinking about it, Ryan nodded.

indeed.

What is Jennifer doing in the imperial capital?

His business empire has not yet expanded to the imperial capital. Perhaps, after this secret mission is over, he can join forces with Luther, Harlowen and others to develop it.

If necessary, you can contact the Stewart family where Alyosha belongs.

After Jennifer went back to her room to rest, Ryan thought about it and picked up the wooden box again.

Ryan opened the wooden box and grabbed all the twelve soul energy crystals.

[Ding! Soul energy crystals that can improve the crystallization of spiritual power have been detected. Do you want to accelerate absorption? (Note: The system can remove impurities and absorb all at once.)]

"Yes!"

In an instant, Ryan felt that the number of small crystals in the silver liquid in his spiritual sea began to increase rapidly.

The liquid starts to become a bit like liquid with a bit of crystallized honey.

However, this process only lasted two or three seconds.

Ryan felt a little unsatisfied.

Although the number of small crystals was visibly increasing, the extent of the increase was far less than that of the ancient dragon soul potion taken before.

Ryan looked at the system properties panel:
Spirit: 132 (crystallized 17%)

"After taking the Dragon Soul Potion before, the crystallization progress was 13%. Now that I have consumed twelve soul energy crystals, it can only be increased by 4%?" Looking at the change in the value, Ryan raised his eyebrows and said to himself.

"According to this calculation, the three soul energy crystals only increased by 1%."

"This is still the early stage of crystallization. If it is the middle or late stage..." Thinking of this, Ryan frowned slightly.

No wonder so many talented wizards with extraordinary talents are stuck at the crystallization level.

If he didn't have the system and didn't have various rare medicines to take, it would take at least dozens or even hundreds of years to push the crystallization progress to more than 90%.

at the same time.

Imperial capital of Tamriel.

In the reception room of a luxurious mansion in the Third Ring Road.

The three members of the Dragon Scale Brotherhood who participated in the Dragon Knight preliminary examination with Ryan were seen sitting on one side of the long table, discussing something with the person opposite them.

If Ryan was at the scene, he would find that the person opposite him was also an old acquaintance - Buchanan.

"How is it? You have observed it in the initial test. Are you confident?" Buchanan said with a smile.

"Uh, Mr. Buchanan, to be honest, if I were to meet this Ryan alone, I wouldn't even have time to hide." Reagan spoke first.

"I'm almost the same, Mr. Buchanan. The opponent's strength is even stronger than what your intelligence showed last time!" Bronson said with a serious face.

After hearing the two men's answers, Buchanan did not look frustrated or disappointed, but looked at Barnes who was sitting between the two.

He knew that this person was the strongest among the three.

"Where's Mr. Barnes?" Buchanan asked.

"It's hard to say, it's fifty-fifty! In the preliminary test, the other party showed too little. Unless..." Barnes was silent for a moment and said.

"Unless what?" Buchanan demanded.

"Unless the three of us can be together by then, our winning rate should be over 90%." Barnes thought for a moment and said.

Barnes has reasons to say this.

Since the three of them have similar temperaments and are about the same age, and are all in the Dragon Scale Brotherhood, they often conduct combat coordination training.

Although Reagan and Bronson were weaker than him, the three of them worked well together. If they fought together, they could at least match two of him.

Hearing this, Buchanan immediately laughed and said, "Mr. Barnes, I am here to solve this problem."

"As everyone knows, after being teleported into the secret realm, everyone's position is random. However, Your Highness has already thought of a solution. These are the three positioning crystals that Your Highness had urgently made."

Buchanan said as he pulled out a brown wooden box and placed it on the table.

After he opened it, he turned it towards the three people.

"These three positioning crystals have been specially processed so that they can locate each other even in the special environment of the secret realm."

"With this, you three can gather quickly after entering the secret realm. I think, with the combined strength of the three of you, it should be no problem to deal with this Ryan, right?" Buchanan said with a smile.

Seeing the glittering prismatic crystal in the wooden box, the three looked at each other, especially Reagan and Bronson, who immediately laughed and expressed their opinions:

"Please, Lord Buchanan, convey our thanks to His Highness."

"Please rest assured, Your Highness and Mr. Buchanan, with this, we will definitely complete the mission."

Even Barnes, who was always reserved, smiled and nodded, saying, "Mr. Buchanan, wait for our good news."

"Very good. By the way, this is the blood essence extractor." Buchanan pointed to another square box he brought with him and said with a smile.

"Have a good rest, everyone. You can contact me if you need anything."

A similar scene was taking place in the Durham family mansion in the inner ring of the imperial capital.

Inside the luxurious banquet hall.

The sumptuous food on the long dining table almost overflowed the table, but the maids who came and went were still carrying various delicacies forward.

There were dishes on the table for only two people: Lambert, the disciple of the Tide Sword Master who kept eating, and Duke Drum who was sitting in the main seat with a smile on his face.

Half an hour later.

"Mr. Lambert, after observing this initial test, are you sure?" Duke Durham asked after the other party had eaten and drunk his fill.

"He's a very good opponent. Fighting with him should help me reach the level of a teacher." The muscular Lambert wiped his mouth with a white tablecloth and said.

"Then I feel relieved." Duke Durham smiled.

He certainly understood Lambert's subtext.

The next morning.

Early in the morning, the capable young woman Olena, accompanied by Major General Tatia, came to the Ryan residence.

In the study room.

"Good morning, Lord Ryan." Olena said with a smile on her face.

She had heard that Lord Ryan in front of her had passed the initial test for dragon knight.

"Sir Ryan, congratulations on successfully passing the initial test for the dragon knight selection." The first words Major General Tatia said when she saw Ryan were congratulations.

"Thank you, Lady Tatia, Olena, please take a seat." Ryan said with a smile.

After some greetings, Tatia sat up straight. The well-tailored major general uniform outlined the feminine curves well. She said, "Sir Ryan, I am here this time to hand over the special communication device used in the secret realm to you."

As she spoke, Tatia opened a dark wooden box she carried with her, took out a thin crystal that emitted a faint witchcraft glow, and handed it to Ryan.

Ryan raised his eyebrows, took it immediately and looked at it carefully.

All I saw was a thin sheet of crystal, the size of a mobile phone from my previous life, made entirely of some kind of transparent material, with strange patterns engraved on both the front and back. At first glance, it looked like a circuit board from my previous life.

"The method of using this communication device is very simple. When you are in the secret realm, you only need to inject a little mental power to communicate."

After a brief thought, Ryan asked, "Submission?"

"Is it a communication between other personnel involved in the mission, or a communication with the headquarters?"

Tatia said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Mr. Ryan, I didn't make it clear just now. The communication of the device is limited to two-way communication between you and the headquarters. As for the executives, they cannot communicate directly with each other."

"This special communication device has a one-way communication function even in extreme situations. In other words, even in the turbulence of space, the command center located at the Astrologer's Platform can still transmit messages to you in one direction."

Can only communicate with the headquarters?

Logically speaking, if a group of people have a common mission goal, wouldn't it be more reasonable for them to be able to communicate with each other?

Could it be that it is to avoid some risks?

Although Ryan was a little confused, he did not ask any more questions. Instead, he nodded and said, "I understand."

"Secondly, this device has another function, which is positioning. All personnel performing tasks in the secret territory can check whether the three 'rift' closers have reached the designated location and opened."

"Can we locate each other?" Ryan asked again.

"No." Tatia shook her head and said.

"Everyone's location will only be displayed in the command hall of the Astrologer Platform."

"This is also to ensure that unexpected situations are avoided. For example, if there are spies among the mission personnel," Tatia added, but stopped here.

"I understand." Ryan nodded and said.

Sure enough, there is a reason.

Indeed, this arrangement is quite clever.

The positions of all executive personnel will only be displayed in the command hall of the Astrologer Platform, which avoids the situation where some individuals are infiltrated by cults or other organizations and then deliberately sabotage. At the same time, the unified coordination and command from the command hall can also reasonably deploy personnel and avoid disputes between different departments and teams.

"So what is my main mission this time?" Ryan looked at Tatia and asked.

“You have not been assigned any specific tasks at the moment. You are merely serving as a backup for this operation.” Tatia said with a smile.

Ok?
Tatia's words obviously stunned Ryan.

No tasks assigned?

That's fine too.

"However, as a candidate, you will have tasks to complete during the retest. You can complete the assessment tasks in the secret realm first."

"Yeah." Ryan nodded.

"By the way, Lord Ryan, there is one more thing you should be careful about." Tatia said with a serious face, as if she had thought of something.

"That is about some creatures in the secret realm. Due to the invasion of void beasts, they may have mutated to a certain extent. Therefore, the information you read last time is for reference only."

"Okay, I understand." Ryan immediately remembered the memory crystal that General Augustus gave him last time, which introduced the situation of the secret realm.

There is an introduction to the secret realm of Dragon Valley in the crystal.

Dragon Valley, as the name suggests, its terrain is roughly similar to a huge circular valley.

The valley is surrounded by a circle of towering mountains, and further out, there are various void turbulences.

The area surrounded by the mountains is the real Dragon Valley, with diverse zones and vegetation distribution, including swamps, meadows, forests, deserts, and various vegetation and ferocious species with different habits.

Many of the ferocious species are unique to the secret realm, and they have different abilities. Even legendary warriors need to be careful when dealing with them.

Now that these ferocious species have mutated, they are naturally more difficult to deal with.

"Mr. Ryan, Olena, I have something else to do, so I'll take my leave now. By the way, the production of the special communication device is rather complicated and time-consuming, so please be sure to keep it properly."

"Okay, Master Tatia."

Two days passed in a flash.

Reexamination day.

The Astrologer's Platform in the northwest corner of the Imperial Palace is heavily guarded.

There were dozens of airships in the sky, and interspersed among them were teams of griffin knights.

On the ground, there is a post every five steps and a sentry every ten steps, and they are all guards.

Ryan and other examinees who are taking the re-examination are currently in the starry sky hall of the Astrologer's Platform.

".Ladies and gentlemen, next, His Excellency Dallion, the Great Astrologer of the Empire, will announce the judging criteria for the re-examination."

I saw an old man with a nearly one-meter-long white goatee, wearing a gray robe and holding a wooden cane, walking towards the crowd with a smile.

Huh?
Ren frowned.

As the name suggests, an astrologer is a wizard who is proficient in astrology and prophecy-related witchcraft, and their individual combat capabilities are generally not strong.

If a first-level wizard is proficient in astrology, he can naturally be called an astrologer.

It is like, if a first-level wizard is proficient in a certain divination technique, he can naturally be called a fortune teller.

A great astrologer generally refers to a third-level crystal wizard or above. After all, astrology also requires strong mental strength as a support.

The stronger the mental power, the more accurate the astrology.

But now it seems that the great astrologer in front of him, Lord Darien, is at least a great astrologer at the level of Dawn Wizard, or even stronger.

Although the other party appeared in front of him, Ryan could hardly sense his existence.

In addition, this was not the first time he had heard the name of Lord Dallion. Claire had mentioned to him before about a prophecy that this man had made.

The gist is that the current turmoil in the empire is just the beginning.

Ryan has a vivid memory of this.

"Later, the great astrologers of the empire will open the ancient teleportation array leading to the secret realm of Dragon Valley."

"You will then enter the most important secret realm for the empire, and you will also meet the most praised dragons in the empire. Of course, they are young dragons."

"And your mission this time is to gain the recognition of a young dragon. Help them and solve a problem, and they will put a dragon language mark on you."

"Difficult?" Ryan looked thoughtful.

Many people below also began to whisper.

Most people don’t quite understand what this difficulty means.
Apparently, the great astrologer, Lord Dallion, also heard the discussion below. He stroked his beard and said with a smile:
"Solving difficulties is actually very easy to understand. For example, young dragons all need to hunt for blood food. If you help them capture a favorite prey, you can gain their favor."

"Generally speaking, one or two hunts will yield a Dragon Language Mark."

It turned out to be the case.

After hearing Dallion's addition, everyone looked enlightened and relieved.

From this point of view, it is not difficult to obtain this dragon language mark.

"Since there are only six vacancies in the final assessment, the more marks the better."

"Those with the most marks will naturally have a higher chance of gaining the dragon's favor after they return. This is because you have helped their offspring."

After hearing this, all the candidates, including Ryan, basically understood.

It is not difficult to obtain a Dragon Language Mark alone, but the difficult part is to obtain as many marks as possible so as to maintain a top six position.

"Oh, here's a little tip. I suggest you choose a descendant of a certain kind of dragon to carry out the mission."

"For example, if you choose a red dragon, then try to choose red dragon offspring in the future."

"If the dragon language marks of different bloodlines are mixed together, the effect will be slightly weaker than the mark of a single bloodline." The great astrologer Dallion said with a smile.

"Finally, you only have a total of 24 hours. Once the time is up, you will be forcibly pulled back due to the teleportation mark that was just applied."

“This is also to ensure your safety.”

"Also, a void beast has appeared in the secret realm, so everyone needs to be vigilant when carrying out the mission."

That’s all the precautions.

They passed through the heavily guarded circular corridor and went deeper underground. Soon, the candidates, including Ryan, arrived at an empty underground hall.

As soon as you enter the hall, what catches your eye is the ancient stone arch about twenty meters high standing in the center.

The arch is rectangular in shape. The lintel and door frame are made of some dark stone. The surface is engraved with intricate and mysterious patterns, and energy like electric current flashes through the patterns from time to time.

Even though we were more than a hundred meters apart, an ancient and mysterious atmosphere filled the air.

"Is this the ancient portal that leads to the secret realm of Dragon Valley?" Ryan looked at the ancient stone arch in amazement.

The other candidates also looked surprised.

At this time, the great astrologer Dallion, accompanied by five elderly men, came to the front of the stone archway.

"Hiss~ Five Dawn Wizards!"

"What a big deal!"

Soon, along with the strong fluctuations of witchcraft energy, the five Dawn Wizards who were standing in the shape of a pentagram, with the huge witch formation under their feet, blasted a beam of energy light as thick as a water tank towards the ancient stone gate!

In an instant, a strange light curtain gate suddenly appeared in the stone archway.

Everyone could clearly see the scene on the opposite side.

The sky is dotted with stars, and it seems like it is night in the secret realm of Dragon Valley.

"All candidates, enter in order." A responsible commander of the Royal Guards shouted.

When Ryan and other thirty candidates entered the light gate one by one.

Suddenly, three groups of people appeared on the side of the hall. They were three people wearing sword-bearing uniforms, a four-man team wearing military uniforms, and three people wearing guards uniforms.

Moreover, each of the three teams had a person carrying something similar to a suitcase.

"Everyone, you guys come in too."

Several people nodded.

Just as these people were about to enter, suddenly, a strong energy wave came from a distance.

The strength of this energy is actually comparable to the witchcraft energy fluctuations that open the door to the secret realm.

This made everyone present look back towards the southeast of the imperial capital.

That's the direction where the energy comes from!
"This is..." A Dawn Wizard with white hair and beard in the pentagram array looked thoughtful.

"Oh no! The other party is forcibly accessing our transmission channel." Suddenly, his eyes widened and he said in horror.

"Quick! Come in quickly!"

"We have to end the teleportation array here immediately."

After hearing the old man's words, the three teams looked at each other and immediately rushed into the secret realm.

"No, it's not enough for us to stop here. The other party has already connected to the secret realm. We have to send someone immediately to interrupt the other party's transmission." The great astrologer Dallion said with a gloomy face.

(End of this chapter)