Wizard: I have ten trillion nanomachines

Time flies, and thirteen years have passed quickly.

Thirteen years is enough time for an ordinary person to grow a child into a young adult, but for a powerful superhuman, it is just a blink of an eye.

Outside the lair, the continent of Volo was turned upside down.

The banner of the Tree of Order has been planted all over this land of 7.2 million square kilometers.

A network of railways, like silver dragons, roars and weaves between plains and mountains, tightly connecting industrial cities that rise from the ground.

The whistles of steam trains replaced the sounds of horses' hooves, becoming the new pulse of this continent.

The towering chimneys spewed out black smoke, which was then purified and released after being blessed by the wizard's magic.

In the factory, the roar of steam engines never ceased day and night, and the assembly line produced all sorts of products.

Cotton yarn and cotton cloth, iron and steel, parts, daily necessities...

These supplies flowed along railways and air routes to every corner of the mainland.

Charlie and others strictly followed the ten-year development plan left by Lo Kunlun and implemented a series of innovations.

The universal education system is like a vast network, covering every village and town on the mainland, allowing all school-age children to attend school and learn basic mathematical and scientific knowledge as well as extraordinary common sense.

Meanwhile, well-equipped exploration teams were assembled and ventured deep into the mountains, forests, and treacherous waters of the mainland to unearth buried mineral deposits and hidden treasures in the forests.

This top-down, highly efficient, and unified order can unleash terrifying power.

In the extraordinary world, individual strength is always revered, but the power of the group should never be underestimated.

Especially when this group stands on the shoulders of advanced productive forces.

Over the course of thirteen years, guided by the Tree of Order, a massive construction boom swept across the entire continent of Volo.

Smooth, wide cement roads replaced the muddy country lanes, and hospitals and clinics of all sizes appeared.

The population of the continent of Volo has doubled in thirteen years, exceeding two hundred million.

Abundant labor, coupled with the dual benefits of extraordinary power and advanced technology, has breathed new life and vitality into this long-dormant continent. And behind all this prosperity lies the nourishment that Lokunlun needs most.

The efficiency of the Soul Gathering Witch Array has increased with the surge in population and the advancement of industrialization.

The souls of those who have passed away no longer dissipate into the world, but are continuously collected by the roots of the Split Tree and transported to the depths of the nest in Lokunlun.

As the bridgehead of the Tree of Order and the only window for foreign trade, the Thorn Islands are no longer what they used to be.

What was once a wild and untamed land is now one of the most prosperous trading ports in the wizarding world.

Today, the population of the Thorn Islands has soared to 500,000, most of whom are immigrants from the continent of Volo.

Inside the main island's harbor, merchant ships from all over the world lined up side by side, their masts like a forest. Merchants haggled over prices in various accents, and goods were piled up like mountains. In the center of the archipelago, the Wizard's Tower soared into the clouds, its inscribed runes flowing day and night, radiating an awe-inspiring magical aura.

After absorbing the bloodline essence given by Luo Kunlun, Rhine completely replenished her Forest Spirit bloodline and successfully advanced to become a first-ring bloodline user.

One ring of bloodline plus one ring of wizardry is already quite powerful.

Having powerful figures in charge is not enough; the power of the Tree of Order never extends beyond individuals.

The Archipelago Legion is equipped with the latest rifles, heavy machine guns, and large-caliber artillery.

These firearms are quite powerful; even three to five trained ordinary soldiers could kill low-level superhumans with these weapons.

With the addition of the defensive array of split trees scattered throughout the archipelago, the Thorn Islands have long been an impregnable fortress, and anyone who comes to invade will have to think twice before they dare to do so.

The collaboration between the Tree of Order and the Star Ring Merchant Guild has yielded fruitful results over the past thirteen years.

The contract that Valen brought back back then became the cornerstone of the Star Ring Merchant Guild's meteoric rise.

The Chamber of Commerce's leadership was acutely aware of the power a second-circle wizard represented, so they did not hesitate to shift their focus toward the Thorn Isles.

Merchant ships laden with rare ores, precious magical texts, and potion ingredients continuously sailed into the archipelago's ports. Meanwhile, machinery produced by the Tree of Order, improved magical plant seeds, and other products were distributed to every corner of the wizarding world through the Star Ring Merchant Guild's channels.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Xinghuan Chamber of Commerce completely shed its "easy target" label.

They squeezed out their former rivals and, through mergers and acquisitions, rose to become a significant trading giant in the wizarding world, and no one dared to provoke them easily anymore.

Based on this achievement, Warren rose to become a prominent figure in the Chamber of Commerce.

During those thirteen years, the entire wizarding world never experienced true peace and tranquility.

Conflict is the eternal theme of this world. On the Wizarding Continent, the center of the world, battles and conspiracies unfold every day.

The battles between individuals, the fierce fighting among small and medium-sized forces for resources and territory, and even the four dominant forces frequently experience local conflicts.

Beyond the Wizarding Continent, the struggle has never ceased.

Along the border of the continent of Volo, exploration teams of the Tree of Order are sailing in armed steamships, cutting through the waves and heading towards more distant seas.

The Tree of Order is no longer content with this land with little magic; the horn of expansion has already sounded.

In the islands of the southern continent, pirate raids were commonplace.

"That ruler of the Southern Continent, like the master, lives a secluded life and doesn't concern himself with affairs."

On the top floor of the Wizard's Tower in the Thorn Islands, Rhine was carefully reviewing the information gathered by the intelligence department using various methods.

The Tree of Order is no longer the small, isolated force it once was. As the new overlord, it has naturally attracted countless hostile gazes.

Second-circle wizards are not immortal; they still have a limited lifespan, approximately two thousand years.

Once a powerful second-tier expert is no longer in charge, even the strongest hegemonic force will instantly disintegrate.

The moment the giant falls is the moment when countless forces devour his legacy.

Whether it's the secondary forces that have been suppressed by the overlord for a long time, or other overlords who are eyeing the throne, they are all secretly watching every potential prey.

Against this backdrop, the importance of intelligence work becomes undeniable.

It is not necessary to discover the other party's core secrets, but at least one must have a thorough understanding of the overall situation in the world and the strengths and weaknesses of all parties.

As the external window of the Tree of Order, the Thorn Islands naturally took on this important responsibility.

With its vast trade network, the Tree of Order has woven an intelligence network covering most of the wizarding world.

Every day, a massive amount of information converges here with the passing merchant ships, and is then organized and analyzed by specialized intelligence wizards.

Based on these, the Tree of Order's understanding of the entire world has deepened day by day, especially of the other five hegemonic powers.

The Four Elemental Towers dominate the western coast of the Wizarding Continent, primarily populated by traditional elemental wizards. With a large and deeply rooted wizarding community, they are one of the oldest powers on the Wizarding Continent in modern times.

The Bloodline Council, which dominates the southern part of the Wizarding Continent, is an alliance of various bloodline families and sorcerer schools, led by a second-circle bloodline sorcerer. It comprises ten major figures.

Normally, the ten giants are constantly vying for power and engaging in frequent conflicts, but none of them dare to disobey the orders of that second-circle sorcerer.

The Bloodline Council controls a stable spatial passage, but unfortunately, the world on the other side of the passage is home to a powerful native supernatural force. Even a second-ring wizard leading a large number of first-ring powerhouses could not conquer it.

Alchemy City and Totem Mountains are located in the eastern and northern parts of the Wizarding Continent, respectively.

Alchemy City needs no introduction. Centered around alchemists, it specializes in secondary professions such as crafting magical tools, brewing potions, and forging puppets. Although its membership is small, each alchemist possesses astonishing skills, and the vast number of alchemical creations it produces are the foundation of Alchemy City's strength.

As for the Totem Mountains, they are particularly noteworthy.

The wizards there are a special branch called totem wizards.

According to intelligence, these shamans gain power by worshipping a special artifact called a "beast spirit totem" and establishing a connection with the totem in their spiritual sea.

The methods used to create these totems are extremely ancient, involving the souls and blood of powerful magical beasts.

Totem wizards primarily rely on brute force in combat, supplemented by a few special abilities. When they reach a certain level of cultivation, they can use their own magical power as a fuel to support the massive totem form.

Such methods are not particularly impressive, but totem shamans have a unique advantage: inheritance.

Regardless of the wizarding talent of future generations, as long as they possess the aptitude to open their spiritual sea, they can establish a connection with the totems passed down from their ancestors and gain power.

For a totem to become stronger, it is very simple: it only needs to devour other totems.

The Beast King of the Totem Mountains relied on the totems accumulated by his tribe over generations to devour and merge with them, thus achieving a qualitative change from quantitative change and advancing to the level of a second-circle wizard.

In that sense, his wizarding talent wasn't actually that outstanding.

However, according to intelligence, this road has now come to an end.

Otherwise, the day the Beast King advances to the second ring will be the day the Totem Wizard perishes.

After all, the Beast King had fought his way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and his growth process was filled with killing and devouring.

If there's a possibility of becoming even stronger, he will definitely do it. Or rather, all second-ring cultivators in this world are like that.

However, the totem wizards still exist, indicating that the Beast King can no longer rely on devouring totems to increase its strength.

The Beast King also realized this. He had long since gone into seclusion, trying to find a new path.

In addition, when talking about the North, one cannot help but mention the polar wizards.

This is the gathering place of the fewest remaining battle-type wizards. They are almost isolated from the entire wizarding continent, yet no one dares to underestimate them.

The cultivation path of battle-body wizards is completely different from that of other wizards. They do not construct complex magical models in their spiritual sea, but instead specialize in only one battle-body model that can influence and modify the physical body, also known as the extraordinary framework.

He tempered his body with magic, transforming and strengthening his entire body bit by bit, from tendons and bones to flesh and blood, from internal organs to skin, and even fragile parts such as ears and eyes were forged into indestructible structures.

When physical strength reaches its peak, a single punch or kick can flatten mountains, and speed can easily break the speed of sound. At the same time, a special energy originating from the fusion of body and soul will be born within the body, which can be called witch power or spiritual energy.

This energy is both offensive and defensive, and can be used for both attack and defense without any problems. It can also easily be used for flight and long-range attacks.

Reaching this level is equivalent to becoming a formal wizard.

Afterwards, the battle-body wizard needs to further refine the battle-body model and modify the physical body.

Specifically, this manifests as patterns resembling engravings appearing on the skin, making their bodies more coordinated and fluid, and causing their energy power to surge.

When these patterns spread throughout the body, forming a complete cycle, the body undergoes a fundamental transformation.

That's a near-immortal body.

Even if it is cut into pieces, as long as the body tissues can come together, it can quickly recover.

If one had to put it bluntly, they had at this point become an independently functioning life system. This level corresponds to a second-circle wizard.

As for the path to the Third Ring Road, it requires extreme modification and strengthening of its own microstructure. However, this realm is too distant, and no one can reach it for the time being.

Even a second-ring battle-type wizard has only appeared once in the entire history of the wizarding world, during the Middle Ages.

That person started his career in the polar regions and became the first generation of the Polar Lord.

Since then, the strongest of all the Polar Lords has only risen to the first ring.

They possess the inherited knowledge of second-ring battle-body wizards, but lack the corresponding power, which should make them the target of everyone's criticism.

Fortunately, the polar regions have extremely cold climates, and the dominant forces in the polar regions happen to have ways to take advantage of this cold environment.

It slows down the opponent's magic and even the speed of their thinking.

The Second Ring wouldn't fight for the Arctic and the Arctic Lords, who live in freezing weather and have nothing of use to them, because they wouldn't bother to construct a Second Ring battle model.

Although first-circle wizards covet the resources of the polar regions and the knowledge of second-circle wizards, they are no match for the polar lords.

Meanwhile, the Beast King of the Totem Mountains once went to the polar regions and copied a copy of the inherited knowledge of the Battle Body Wizard.

There was no conflict between the Beast King and the Arctic Lord. After all, even the weakest second-ring is still a second-ring, and the Beast King's enormous totem form, even in its manifestation, possessed world-destroying destructive power.

As for why, the Beast King clearly wanted to use the knowledge of the Battle Body Wizards to change his original power system, and from then on, he would withdraw from worldly affairs and devote himself to seclusion. He only gave orders to the totem wizards under his command, instructing them to take care of the polar regions and provide them with protection.

This is similar to the relationship between Lokunlun and the Star Ring Chamber of Commerce; it's a mutually beneficial transaction.

Since then, the Beast King has never shown his face again. The only time he appeared was when Luo Kunlun manifested himself in the world.

At that time, a totem wizard saw that the Beast King's totem form had shrunk considerably compared to the past, and at the same time, it had awakened the ability to divide energy and control clones to carry out remote actions.

The research on the Beast King has yielded some results.

This is the highest-level intelligence that the intelligence departments of the major forces in the wizarding world have obtained in recent years, apart from the mysterious second-circle wizard, Lo, the leader of the Tree of Order.

Then came the Southern Land Wizarding Alliance.

The ruler of the Southern Continent is also an unavoidable figure.

The Southern Land Wizard Alliance was originally a product of a group of "outcasts" ostracized from the Wizarding Continent banding together for mutual support.

In the Wizarding Continent, it's perfectly normal for those who break through first to control resources.

But over time, some will inevitably slip through the net.

Unable to integrate into their original interest groups, they went beyond the Wizarding Continent, which is one of the reasons for the expansion of various continents.

The Southern Continent is a rare place with abundant magic and extraordinary resources.

No one knows who the first wizard to set foot on the southern continent was. It is a history too distant, long buried by the dust of time. Perhaps it was a lost explorer on the high seas, or perhaps a wizard who wanted to establish his own territory.

In short, when the first wizards set foot on this energy-rich land, they were like seeds that took root and quickly multiplied in this fertile soil.

As time passed and years changed, as large and small wizarding forces spread across the southern continent like stars, the struggle for resources and territory became increasingly fierce.

In order to mediate the disputes, the Southern Land Wizard Alliance was thus established.

The alliance was formed by several of the strongest forces in the Southern Continent, and its nominal leader was the mysterious "Lord of the Southern Continent".

This ruler of the Southern Continent is the most mysterious being in the entire continent. No one knows his origins, and no one has ever seen his true appearance.

There are countless versions of his legend among the wizards of the Southern Lands: some say that he was a native wizard of the Southern Lands who climbed step by step from the bottom to the top.

Some say he was an apprentice of a certain school of thought on the Wizarding Continent, with high talent and opportunities. Knowing that he could not obtain a path to become a formal wizard on the Wizarding Continent, he defected from the school and came to the Southern Continent in anonymity to seek opportunities.

The only certainty is that he successfully advanced to the second ring seven hundred years ago, and with unparalleled strength, he naturally took control of the entire Southern Continent.

After becoming the ruler of the Southern Continent, this powerful figure did not concern himself with the daily operations of the alliance; instead, he appointed seven elders to jointly manage its affairs.

The seven elders each held power in their respective regions, checking and balancing each other. Occasionally they would fight over interests, but they never dared to overstep the rules set by the Lord of the Southern Continent.

The ruler of the Southern Continent then lived a secluded life, rarely interfering in alliance affairs. His only public appearance was six hundred years ago, when the power of the Lord of the Abyss Sea, the three-headed sea dragon Gamani, extended to the near seas of the Southern Continent. He personally went to the Abyss Sea and signed a non-aggression pact with that powerful sea overlord.

The Southern Land Wizarding Alliance has a lot of interaction with the outside world, and many forces have merchant ships sailing overseas, just like the White Tower back then, although they cannot compare to the Star Ring Merchant Guild in terms of scale.

"Speaking of which, the islands surrounding the Southern Continent are rather chaotic."

The islands surrounding the Southern Continent have always been synonymous with chaos. Pirates are rampant and bandits are everywhere. Areas that lose a first-level wizard to guard them often cannot last more than a month before being plundered by pirates. The island's inhabitants are either enslaved or die a horrible death.

In recent years, the chaos in the archipelago has exceeded anything seen before. Pirates have become increasingly arrogant and their actions increasingly bizarre. Even some territories with a first-level wizard in charge have been attacked by unknown pirates.

They not only plundered property and resources, but also carried out large-scale abductions of people.

On the surface, it appears that pirates were trying to expand their power, or rather, to sell the people they had captured to the slave market for profit.

But strangely, according to intelligence networks, those who were abducted seemed to have vanished into thin air and did not appear in the slave trade.

Just like the Qingyu Island incident, the whereabouts of the others who disappeared in the chaos have remained unknown. Even though Rhine is now a formal wizard, he still cannot find any information about his former companions or the pirates who attacked Qingyu Island.

The missing population, pirates of unknown origin.

What a coincidence!

...............................

"Wizard, your formation is truly interesting."

In the dark abyss beneath the sea, a winged serpent communicated with a person surrounded by twinkling starlight.

Being able to communicate with wizards, this winged serpent is definitely not weak.

Strangely, dozens of energy chains shot out from the winged serpent's body, intertwining with the dark abyss, as if locking the serpent in place.

"It's just a trivial skill." The person surrounded by starlight spoke calmly, his voice indistinguishable between male and female, but his eyes shone brightly in the darkness of the deep sea. "It's just a slight combination of flesh-regeneration magic and sacrificial arrays, nothing compared to your naturally powerful being."

"So, you plan to use this method to create a physical body for me outside the seal, and then I will transfer my soul into the new body to get rid of this damned seal."

"But unfortunately, why would I do that?" The winged serpent shook its head and continued, "Over the millennia, countless creatures have stumbled into this dark abyss by accident, yet I haven't transferred my soul into them."

"Because these chains appear to be attached to my blood and body, but they are anchored to my soul."

"Don't worry, I won't help you escape this way," the mysterious wizard said. "As a lucky person who climbed up from the bottom, I have acquired a lot of knowledge from ancient wizards."

"One of the methods to break the seal is to use a portion of flesh and blood to create a special doll to replace the sealed person."

"Use some of my flesh and blood to create special puppets as substitutes?" The winged serpent's massive head tilted slightly, a hint of surprise flashing in its vertical pupils. "This method is indeed ingenious, but I don't think it will be useful."

"Therefore, I have improved the spell. It will use a sacrificial array as a catalyst and a large number of living souls as fuel. The resulting puppet will then become your 'mirror image' and bear the burden of the seal for you."

"And you, all you need to do is part some flesh and blood, inject a bit of remnant soul, attach it to the puppet, and you can deceive everyone."

"The anchor to be sealed is attracted by the doll, and your soul can take the opportunity to break free of the chains and regain its freedom."

"So what exactly do you want?" The winged serpent's voice was slightly hoarse. "There's no such thing as a free lunch. You've gone to so much trouble to help me escape; you can't be without a reason."

"State your requirements."

"That's great." The mysterious wizard's eyes sparkled. "What I need is your help."