The Wizard's Secret Journey

Chapter 271 Conflict and End (4k)

"It works well."

On the outskirts of Silver Ring City, Lynn's figure slowly emerged. He sensed the distance to the Black Falcon and silently assessed it in his mind.

Compared to the pleasant surprises brought by the Imprisonment Rune, the Teleportation Rune's performance was only mediocre.

The teleportation distance is 20 kilometers farther than using the enforcement order directly, and it can be used to teleport anywhere within a 120-kilometer range, while the energy consumption is slightly reduced. Lynn can teleport about 15 times using his own magic power.

However, this conventional approach is relative to the effect of the enforcement order. If we talk about its effect directly, in some ways it is even more useful to Lynn than the imprisonment rune!

Spatial teleportation magic falls into the category of second-tier and above, and to achieve the effect of teleportation runes, one must be at least a second-tier advanced wizard who is proficient in spatial magic!

With the Imprisonment Rune and the Teleportation Rune, I am not only basically invincible among first-tier wizards, but I can also easily escape from second-tier wizards.

"At that time, first activate the Puppet Rune, then activate the Imprisonment Rune. Even a second-tier wizard will be trapped for at least half an hour."

'But by then, I had already escaped thousands of miles away using teleportation runes!'

Lynn was overjoyed, a faint sense of security spreading through her heart.

With a thought, he teleported back to the Black Falcon and boarded the ship to return to Silver Ring City.

Five days had passed since Daphne participated in the first-tier Holy Ring Gathering. Lynn had successfully inscribed the teleportation rune two days prior, but only now did he have the opportunity to test it.

Back at the Horsens School headquarters, just as the Golden Thorn apprentices' discussion was ending, Lynn saw many Golden Thorn apprentices walking out of the tiered council hall.

The first-tier Holy Ring Gathering is still ongoing, but the regular Holy Ring Gatherings in which wizard apprentices participate have already ended.

It is worth mentioning that the wizard Zor, who participated in the cleaning of the Holy Ring, and Chester, who took his place, both returned safely.

According to Zor, this cleaning mission was very easy. He barely had to exert any effort, and the entire 0th ring was easily cleared.

As a result, Zor had to wait for most of the day before he could take the interdimensional shuttle back to Silver Ring City.

As for the Golden Thorn Apprentices, they suffered no casualties, but none of them made it into the top 100.

The outstanding apprentices accumulated by the Horsens School in previous years all perished in the previous Saint-Mi ring pollution incident. This batch of Golden Thorn apprentices, after all, were selected later, and their qualities in all aspects are weaker than those of the previous Golden Thorn apprentices.

It is likely that Horsens considered this point, which is why he sent a seed of talent of perfect quality.

Thinking about this, Lynn couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

He stepped off the Black Falcon, exchanged brief greetings with the passing Golden Thorn apprentices, and went straight to his office.

The middle-aged wizard Zor sat at his desk by the window, looking at a paper book.

"Good morning, junior Lynn." He greeted Lynn indifferently as he entered, without even looking up, showing none of his previous enthusiasm.

Lynn seemed unsurprised by this and calmly asked, "Has Lord Horsens responded?"

"Not yet, the message was sent yesterday. Lord Horsens is very busy, how could he reply so quickly?" Zor closed the book. "If you ask me, we shouldn't bother Lord Horsens with such a small matter."

Lynn approached, pulled out a chair, and sat down opposite him: "So, Senior Zor has decided to agree with my decision?"

Zor paused slightly, then pursed his lips: "How come I never realized you were so eloquent?"

Lynn just smiled and didn't say anything.

He did have a conflict with Zoller recently.

The conflict stemmed from deciding which Goldenthorn apprentice should receive the perfect Seed of Talent.

“Vic has been in the first-class apprentice stage for 3 years, and he only needs one more talent seed to break through. Moreover, as a Golden Thorn, his past performance and ranking in the Holy Ring Society prove that he is very capable!”

"I still believe that giving him the seed of perfect quality talent is the best choice."

Lynn didn't say much; he didn't want to argue with Zor. He simply said, "Let's wait for Lord Horsens to decide."

Seeing his expression, Zor persisted, saying, "Although Leah is also a Golden Thorn, her overall abilities are far inferior to Vic's..."

Lynn, not wanting to hear him repeat those words he had said countless times before, interrupted, "Vic is already 26 years old this year, while Leah is only 16. Perfect quality talent seeds are hard to come by and should be used on more talented wizard apprentices... I think this is also what Lord Horsens wants."

"...Hmph, you can't tell what talent someone has just by looking at their cultivation speed! In the past hundred years, I've seen too many late-blooming wizard apprentices, many of whom later became first- or even second-tier wizards! On the contrary, those wizard apprentices who were called geniuses when they were young were still just apprentices until they died!" Zor said indignantly.

“Senior Zor—” Lynn said helplessly, “If we don’t consider cultivation speed or age, then please tell me what else we can use to measure the potential of a wizard apprentice?”

"..." Zor was speechless for a moment, then stammered, "Of course it's comprehension..."

"Doesn't being able to cultivate quickly just mean you have good comprehension?" Lynn interrupted him again.

Zor's expression changed several times, then he suddenly said in a low voice, "I know you and that apprentice Leah are old acquaintances..."

Lynn's expression turned cold this time, and he said sternly, "Lord Zor, please watch your words!"

Lynn could honestly say that his selection of the Golden Thorn apprentice was entirely based on objective considerations, without any bias towards relatives. The reason he chose Leah was because she was truly the most suitable among this batch of Golden Thorn apprentices to use the Seed of Talent.

After all, there are only two Golden Thorn apprentices in this batch: one is Vic, and the other is Lia, which in itself proves Lia's excellence.

Seeing Lynn's cold expression, Zor realized he had spoken without thinking.

"I'm sorry... Junior Lynn, I acted impulsively." Zor said apologetically, looking embarrassed.

"It's alright," Lynn replied calmly.

Seeing Lynn's expression, Zor knew he was still angry. After hesitating for a moment, he said slowly, "Junior brother, do you know how long ago I was promoted to a first-level wizard?"

Lynn glanced at Zor but said nothing.

"79 years old." Zor sighed softly, a hint of reminiscence flashing in his eyes.
"If a wizard apprentice wants to retain the possibility of advancing to the next level, he cannot undergo too many modifications, which means that his natural lifespan is no more than 120 years. Moreover, the last 20 years are basically a downward spiral, with both his spirit and body inevitably weakening, making advancement virtually impossible."

“I was promoted at 79, which seems like I still have 20 years to go before I turn 100, but I should have been promoted to the next level in my 20s.”

Zor didn't look at Lynn, but picked up the book and began to speak to himself: "When I was young, I was too ambitious. I became a first-class wizard apprentice at the age of 26, and at 28 I obtained a good quality Seed of Talent. "Back then, I always felt that the future was bright, and that I deserved a better Seed of Talent, so I sold that Seed of Talent, hoping to use the magic stones I obtained to earn more magic stones... But I failed. My original school was destroyed in a war, and I became a wandering wizard apprentice. It wasn't until 50 years later that I finally obtained another Seed of Talent."

"The seed of talent I obtained that time was only of ordinary quality, but I used it without hesitation, which finally enabled me to advance to the next level, eliminate my enemies, and break free from the endless cycle of suffering."

Lynn listened silently. He didn't know that Zol had such a past, but considering that the wizard was over a hundred years old, he could understand.

"So, senior, you think Vic is like you from the past?"

“That’s right.” Zor nodded, then emphasized, “Very much so, so much so that I know no one can persuade him.”

He will not consider promotion unless he has a seed of talent of perfect quality.

"Unless, he has gone through the same hardships as I have."

Lynn nodded slowly. He could understand why Zor insisted, but it still couldn't convince him: "Vic is not the senior he was back then, and the Horsens School is not the same school he belonged to. Vic didn't get the Seed of Talent this year, but he will have another chance next year. The Horsens School won't be destroyed so easily."

Zor disagreed with Lynn's statement, but he smirked and said nothing more.

The office fell into silence.

After a long silence, Zor slowly said, "The future is uncertain—that's the only lesson I've learned in my hundred-plus years of life."

Lynn raised an eyebrow slightly, but before he could answer, a familiar figure appeared in the center of the office.

“Lord Horsens!” Lynn greeted him quickly, and Zoll followed suit.

"Good day, you two." Horsens smiled, extended his hand, and a new Seed of Talent floated out and landed on their office floor.

“I have received your message. After careful consideration, I believe that both Vic and Leah are excellent apprentices. The new talent seed is hereby given to you. Both of them should receive a perfect quality talent seed.”

Horsens was indeed very busy. After saying these words, he gradually disappeared, leaving Lynn and Zol looking at each other in bewilderment.

……

……

While Horsens' final gift of talent resolved the conflict between Lynn and Zor at its root, it also resulted in a stalemate, with neither side able to convince the other.

Therefore, the atmosphere between the two was always a bit strange. Although it couldn't be said that they were not harmonious, it was far from the relationship between Lynn and Samuel in the past.

However, when it came to serious matters, the two were quite clear-headed. What made Lynn especially happy was that Zor was very willing to handle the daily affairs of the base, just like Samuel had been before. So after confirming this, he was happy to have some free time and basically resumed his secluded life.

I spend all my time in the meditation room and rarely go out unless there's something important to do.

Lynn had finished studying all the Black Moon relics except for the Blood Wine Silver Cup. His main task during his daily seclusion became familiarizing himself with the Black Moon runes he had mastered, his own sorcery, and—meditation.

After living like this for a week, Lynn realized that apart from meditation, he could no longer find any skills to improve.

In this week, through hard work and his talent for understanding principles, he has basically completed the organization of all his knowledge. He can use both Black Moon Runes and witchcraft with ease, and his combat power has improved compared to before.

Lynn sometimes even gets so arrogant that he thinks he could defeat an ordinary elementary-level second-tier wizard.

However, the fact that there was no improvement beyond meditation itself still made him anxious.

After meditating for two more days, Lynn finally couldn't stand the leisurely days and decided to think about where she could improve herself.

Lynn's first thought was the Black Moon Rune.

His only means of fighting enemies of higher ranks right now comes from the Black Moon Runes. So if he can find Black Moon Relics like the Enforcement Order, he can obtain more runes with effects that transcend ranks, such as Imprisonment Runes and Teleportation Runes.

However, there is one very difficult aspect to this path: finding Black Moon relics like the Enforcement Order.

Lynn obtained the enforcement order from the remnants of the Holland School, which can be considered the foundation of a second-order school.

In fact, the enforcement order truly deserves its status, since looking around, Lynn couldn't find any magical artifact on the market that could allow a first-tier wizard to cast a second-tier effect.

Therefore, this path seems the most likely, but in reality, the probability is extremely low.

In particular, Lynn wanted to obtain the Black Moon Rune, which was more offensive, making it even more difficult.

These Black Moon relics are mostly treasured possessions kept hidden away, rarely put up for sale, and even if they were, the price would probably be beyond Lynn's means.

There's only one way Lynn could possibly obtain such a Black Moon relic—by finding a bargain!
In other words, the Black Moon relics were damaged and sold as "junk".

But this can only be done by luck.

Having figured this out, Lynn no longer stayed in the meditation room every day, but instead went to the major commercial streets and Silver Ring Upper Town every day.

Two more weeks passed. Lynn did manage to buy two Black Moon Relics, but they were both Tier 0 and didn't have much use to him. He could only consider them as ways to enrich his Black Moon Rune accumulation.

But on this day, when Lynn was about to continue his gold panning trip to Upper Silverring, he was startled to hear some news from passersby—

The first-order Holy Ring Gathering has ended.

'It's only been a little over a month, how could it end so quickly?' Lynn was quite astonished.

Normally, the first-order Holy Ring lasts for about two months. In the past, it has lasted for more than a month, but the longest it has lasted for a month and a half. Now it has only lasted for a month and a few days!
It's clearly abnormal for it to end so early.

Lynn couldn't help but think of Daphne, and quickly contacted her using his badge.

'I wonder if the witch returned safely.'

However, Daphne did not respond.

His heart sank, and he immediately lost all interest in picking up bargains, so he hurriedly returned to Silver Ring City.

However, he had barely boarded the flying shuttle when he received a reply from Daphne.

(End of this chapter)