Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 579 The Silent Holy Grail War and the Waterway Project
Wizard Hayes left Locke's dormitory satisfied. He told Locke that he would return to Quinnjoll University that afternoon, and before leaving, he chatted with Locke about Quinnjoll University's famous Fountain of Wisdom.

Quinnjoll University is located on Spring Peak, from which it derives its name. Legend has it that the spring possesses special powers, capable of unlocking the deepest potential within people.

Before leaving, Wizard Hayes proudly mentioned to Locke that his mentor Barbatos, immediately after becoming a third-ring wizard, had arranged for him an opportunity to enter the Wells of Wisdom at Quinnjoll University.

Locke watched as Wizard Hayes left, then raised an eyebrow and smiled, whispering, "What Wizard Hayes was really saying was how much his third-circle wizard mentor, Barbatos, contributed to his becoming a second-circle wizard."

"He is indeed someone to be envied."

From the time he became a formal wizard, Wizard Hayes followed Wizard Barbatos all the way to Barbatos becoming a third-ring wizard, and from then on, his life took off.

He's on the right side.

But judging from his description, how many resources are needed to become a second-circle wizard?

Access to the fountain of wisdom, touted as the second largest in the world, and colonial licenses...

There may be even more resources that I am unaware of.

In short, to become a second-circle wizard, more is needed, and the wizard Hayes is his future.

I am now walking the same path he walked not long ago.

They also need huge resources.

"A second-circle wizard is someone who has broken through the limits of their race for the second time, transforming the act of transcendence from singular to plural, and adapting to the life of a transcendent being," Locke said. "If a first-circle wizard is a young person, then a second-circle wizard is the backbone of the wizarding world."

"My magic pressure seems to be 9110 now, but it's still far from being a second-circle wizard. I need to raise my normal magic pressure to the first-circle limit of 9999 as soon as possible."

Locke pondered, "Then, it's about gathering the resources needed to become a second-circle wizard."

Locke practiced the Peach Arch Thorn Arrow magic for another two hours in the makeshift laboratory in his dormitory.

Allow your spirituality to enter a state of emptiness.

“Two hours…” Locke emerged from a state of complete spiritual blankness, where all his spirituality had been dormant.

He opened his eyes, and a bright blue magical light suddenly emanated from them. The spiritual blankness he had been in for two hours had pushed his magical pressure, mana, and spirituality to their limits. Now, as he suddenly released it, it became even more powerful.

“I’ve been in this state called ‘flow’ for two hours now,” Locke said. “The technique of shifting one’s spirituality to a blank state is truly unique.”

"I don't know if it's just my imagination, but I feel that my magic pressure is rising at a faster rate again, and I've entered a period of rapid improvement."

"As expected, following the witch Catherine's instructions, my magical power will increase rapidly."

Locke put away the Golden Palace Branch and the Small Vajra Date Hanging from the ritual array.

The reason why his Peach Arch Thorn Arrow could progress so rapidly was partly due to the gains he made by directly contacting the source material level using the Queen's Chessboard, and partly due to the effects of these two luxury magical plants.

At 3:40 PM, Locke went out and summoned his cloud whale. He sat on the cloud whale, crossed the sky, and arrived above the Dragonblood Market Castle.

Dragonblood Market, in the Witch's Kitchen.

Locke entered room 31 and saw a wizard who had wrapped himself up like a black magic ball.

Locke looked at him and sighed. "Warwick Wizard, the Holy Wizards of Cloudswamp are not very powerful, and there are no Witchers here who make a living by hunting Dark Wizards."

"what are you doing?"

Warwick pulled down the hood of at least five layers of black magic robes from his head, revealing the head of the silver-cast werewolf.

Warwick shrank back and greeted Locke. "We meet again, Professor Augustine."

"This is the Cloud Marsh Wetlands, where the White Wizard's influence is immense. If I don't wear several layers of magical clothing to conceal my presence, do I think I can safely enter Golden Crown Mountain?!"

Warwick seemed somewhat reproachful to Locke, "How did you, an archaeologist, end up in such a godforsaken place? This is one of the White Wizards' strongholds, one of their most powerful wizarding territories."

"We dark wizards cannot exist here!"

Locke casually asked, "Ah, I'm wondering the same thing. Why isn't there a Dark Wizard Alliance in Yunze Wetlands? Do you know why?"

Warwick was about to speak when suddenly the silver-cast demon eye on his forehead turned.

His expression changed slightly, and then, as if he had thought of something, he pointed to the sky.

Then, he shook his head slightly. "This is the only thing I absolutely cannot tell the White Wizard who asked me. Unless I want to die."

"Furthermore, I don't know much about it either. Don't ask me this question anymore; I can't answer it. Although answering other people's questions is the duty of an archaeologist, this question is protected by a special kind of magic."

Warwick is enigmatic. "I advise you not to waste too much energy on unnecessary matters. Remember this—heaven has eyes."

Locke followed his finger, looked up at the roof, his eyes filled with complex emotions. "Well, then I won't say anything more."

The phrase "Heaven has eyes" is a direct declaration to himself.

What is the Eye of Heaven...?

The Eye of Truth!

Black wizards are a product of the modern era.

From the historical materials Warwick had given him, Locke sensed something was amiss from various angles.

Why did dark wizards only appear in modern times?
Why are dark wizards afraid to tell themselves something they know?

Some powerful force, seemingly a law of nature, is interfering with this matter.

What level of wizardry was that?!
Locke sat down in his seat, then leaned back in his chair and said, "Then let's not talk about heavenly matters. Let's talk about you. Warwick, what did you call me here for?"

Warwick became serious. "This place is indeed difficult to enter, much more difficult than the Six Towers. I used many methods, almost exhausting myself, to finally enter without anyone noticing."

"Hmph, those white wizards are too naive. They want to find me? That's impossible."

Warwick said, "I have to tell you, the plans have changed. I can't wait that long. We need to act quickly."

"Hmm?" Warwick saw Locke looking down and taking out a wish-granting Ganoderma lucidum, and was quite displeased. "What are you doing?"

At this point, Locke set the interface of the Wishful Spirit Mushroom to be visible only to himself.

This large-scale communication water hyacinth system, created by combining the magic of the prophecy and illusion schools, can easily achieve this.

At that moment, Locke saw that the witch Catherine was looking for him.

Catherine the Witch sent him a message. 'A dark wizard who transformed himself into a werewolf has contacted you. Do you know his identity?' Locke glanced up at Warwick, who was boasting about how 'no one noticed' he was, and sighed. He sent Catherine a message: 'Teacher, I know his identity. He asked me to concoct his werewolf transformation potion.'

"He's an archaeologist. He came to see me this time because he wanted to ask me to explore the Abyss Ruins with him. We originally agreed to explore the Abyss Ruins a year and a half later, but I don't know why he suddenly showed up now."

The witch Catherine said, "Hmm, it's because of a policy over in the Starfield Sea. Probably because of the [Waterway Project]."

Locke asked, "Teacher, what is the waterway project?"

After asking the question, Locke immediately realized that the witch Catherine might not reply, because it was probably not something a wizard of his level could know.

But the witch Catherine replied almost instantly. 'Proposed by the Starfield Sea, it's part of the Starfield Sea's Ascension Magic Plan.'

'Using the Abyss River where the Abyss Plane meets the Material Plane, the River Styx where the Underworld Plane meets the Material Plane, and the Cloud Lake in our Three Swamps, we will create waterways connecting all the Wizarding Lands in the Eastern Frontier.'

'Achieve integration of the eastern border region.'

'The waterway doesn't have a name yet because the overall plan hasn't been finalized. Furthermore, this matter requires the approval of the white wizarding associations in the major wizarding lands, and perhaps also guarantees from the local black wizarding alliances that they won't cause trouble.'

"But the groundwork for the waterway project has already begun. I think that's why the dark wizard came to you ahead of time. Once this project starts, it will have a significant impact, affecting even a portion of the Abyss River that borders the Prime Material Plane."

"The Jungle Hand believes this raises environmental concerns, making it a major obstacle to the plan. There is also opposition from organizations such as the Heritage Conservation Foundation. The plan faces significant resistance."

Locke nodded slightly, and then took the opportunity to ask the witch Catherine about the competition to obtain the dimensional coordinates.

The witch Catherine sent a message: 'I don't recommend you use it. It's already been used in a plane to advance to a second-circle wizard, creating its own massive spell.'

'Therefore, most competitions are not suitable for you. But there is one competition you might consider, which will be held soon: the Silent Holy Grail Tournament. Here is the information for you to check.'

Even if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have told you and asked you to participate. Besides, you're very lucky.

Locke saw that the other party had sent a long string of messages related to the Silent Holy Grail War.

The Silent Grail is a comprehensive competition hosted by four of the top academies among the seven major powers of Yunze Wetlands, open to all wizards.

There are only two restrictions.

First, one must be a first-ring wizard.

Secondly, they must be wizards from the True Knowledge Institute of the four major universities.

In other words, this is a formal wizard-level competition held within the four major universities. Every year, participants generally need to reach the first level of magic pressure, which is 9999, to qualify for the competition.

According to the information sent to me by the witch Catherine, the original intention of this competition was to provide a benefit to the researchers of the Institute of True Knowledge.

All researchers participating in this competition can accumulate extensive magical experience, because this competition involves plane exploration, and the competition venue is a plane called the [Silent Plane].

This is a special plane left behind by the Silent Witch, the Third Ring Throne Witch who went to the Starfield Sea. A special trial was set up in this plane.

The competition is about the ability of researchers from the True Knowledge Institutes of the four top universities to explore different planes.

Before leaving Yunze Wetland, the Silent Witch of Golden Crown Mountain left this benefit for Golden Crown Mountain and the other three universities with which it had good relations.

From then on, researchers from the True Knowledge Institutes of the four top universities could participate in this Silent Holy Grail Tournament once every ten years to compete for the Holy Grail.

This year happens to be the period when the 21st Silent Grail War begins.

That's why Catherine the Witch said she was very lucky.

The Silent Grail Wars are exceptionally generous.

It's possible that the Silent Witch advanced to become a fourth-ring wizard and obtained the title of Wizard of Truth after going to the Starfield Sea.

Therefore, the winner of each Silent Grail War will receive the coordinates of a brand new medium-sized plane.

That is, one can have a medium-sized plane to oneself.

It can colonize independently!

After reviewing the information, Locke determined that the Silent Grail War was the competition he needed to participate in most at the moment.

You can obtain a previously unexplored dimension that you desire through this competition.

However, as time has passed, this competition has changed from a contest between the four top universities in Yunze Wetland to a rivalry between them.

The champion represents the prestige of the four top universities.

Therefore, participants need to go through a selection process to be eligible to enter.

After all, if you come in last place, you'll have to wait another ten years to get revenge.

Wait until the next Silent Holy Grail War in ten years.

The witch Catherine sent her a message: 'You can participate in this year's Staff Tournament—the magical combat competition on the day of the Sports Festival. Of all the people from Golden Crown Mountain who can participate in the Silent Grail War, only one researcher at the first crystallization stage is available—the most powerful wizard.'

"And if you want to represent our Golden Crown Mountain in the Silent Grail War, you first need to win the Staff Tournament. If you have no objections, I've registered you."

"If there's anything you don't understand, feel free to ask me anytime. I'm free recently."

Locke, of course, had no objection to this and expressed his gratitude to Catherine the Witch in his reply.

The witch Catherine asked Locke, "How's your training in Peach Bow and Thorn Arrow coming along? How long can you maintain a state of flow?"

Locke replied, "Two hours."

Catherine the Witch replied: 'Hmm, that's quite fast.'

Keep it up, learn it as soon as possible.

At the same time, Warwick tapped his fingers on the table, and after finishing a bunch of rambling and useless words, he lowered his voice and said to Locke, "According to rumors, the Starfield Sea is going to start a major project on the Abyss River. If we don't act soon, it might affect us in the future."

"Therefore, we must act now!"

Locke asked, "A major construction project? What kind of construction project?"

Warwick looked at Locke with suspicion. "How could I possibly know such top-secret information? I already have many friends who know that the Starfield Sea is going to undertake a major project on the Abyss River."

"As for the specific reasons for starting the construction, and what it's going to do... how could we wizards possibly know that? That's information only the higher-ups can access."

(End of this chapter)