Above the mage

Chapter 785 Long-Term Benefits

The list of rewards for the first-class merit of the Sea Sentinels has always been like this.

The selection is dynamically rotated, with very few fixed categories. Most of the items are limited-time, limited-quantity, one-of-a-kind products that are removed from the shelves once sold out.

The advantages of this set of rules are very clear.

The advantage lies in the fact that each time the list is updated, a batch of resources that are suitable for different spell schools and different stages of advancement will be added, and rare materials that are suitable for one's own spellcasting system can always be selected.

The downside is equally obvious: once you miss out on something truly good, it's unlikely you'll get another chance.

For example, the top-tier fourth-ring upgrade potion that was quickly sold out in the previous list is precisely suited to the most mainstream third-ring to fourth-ring advancement stage for Sea Sentinel Mages. It is suitable for a very wide range of people, so its high demand and scarcity are to be expected.

Gaode Maps scrolled through the newly updated list of first-class merit redemptions page by page.

The overall quality of this updated list is slightly higher than the previous one, making it even rarer and more scarce.

However, scarcity and rarity are often accompanied by a common characteristic:

Their applicability is mostly narrow, and not all mages can use them.

[Shadow Mind Extract Potion]

[A fourth-tier alchemical extraction potion of the Mind-Body system, refined from the illusory energy particles diffused from the Shadow Plane.]

Upon consumption, it permanently solidifies the caster's mental barrier, significantly increasing resistance to mind control, illusion mimicry, and mental shock (fourth ring), and stabilizing spellcasting resistance to interference.

[Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *2]

This is a newly added popular mental potion in this round of exchanges, specifically targeting illusions, mind disturbances, and mental shocks at the fourth ring level and below.

It is highly compatible with the increasingly common mind and illusion spells that become more prevalent after the third ring.

Such magical potions, which can directly and permanently enhance combat power, have always been highly sought-after.

Gaode estimated that he was lucky to be able to see it, as the timing was just right. If he had come back two or three days later, it would most likely have been redeemed by someone else.

However, he possesses the fifth-order Mandora's Eye, as well as the body of a magic ninja and powerful mental strength. For him, this bottle of Shadow Mind Extraction Potion has overlapping effects and is extremely inefficient.

Therefore, even knowing its value and popularity, Gaode Maps still decisively skipped it.

【Earth Vein Crystal】

[Elemental crystal cores condensed from living ley line magma contain abundant primordial earth and fire essence. They can be used to forge extraordinary fire elemental magical weapons, or directly refined to nourish fire elemental magic crystals, slightly increasing the maximum amount of mana.]

[Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *2]

This is a top-tier resource that can permanently enhance a mage's magical power.

For any spellcaster, there can never be too much mana.

Treasures that can permanently enhance magical power are absolute hard currency.

Unfortunately, it's limited to enhancing fire elemental magic crystals.

Although Gaode cultivates both elements, one is wood and the other is ice, and he has nothing to do with fire.

Forcibly refining it will only lead to conflicting magical attributes, which is useless and can only be discarded.

【Linggen Fungus Mother】

[A fourth-tier extraordinary fungal mother culture that can coexist with various magical plants, accelerating their maturation cycle, increasing mutation probability, and stabilizing medicinal properties. It serves as the core cultivation base for high-level herb gardens and magical plant gardens.]

[Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *2]

Gao De's gaze froze.

【Spirit Root Mother】is suitable for planting with magic potions and has extremely strong growth potential.

It's not particularly popular on the entire list; in fact, it's almost completely ignored.

One reason is that it doesn't align with the philosophy of military mages.

It cannot directly improve combat power.

In an environment where military merits are scarce and the pressure to achieve them is immense, for military mages, treasures that can directly enhance combat power are the highest priority.

This thing not only offers no improvement to combat power, but it also requires two first-class merits to exchange for, making it extremely low in cost-effectiveness.

Another point is that this is a long-term investment; the longer the investment period, the higher its value.

The value it demonstrated in the previous years certainly couldn't compare to the two first-class merit awards.

If it can be used for decades or even a century, its value will far exceed that of two first-class merits.

For a military mages with such a fast pace and pressure, how could they afford to wait for decades or even centuries?

More importantly, its implementation threshold is extremely high.

You must have your own Magic Plant Garden to make it function properly.

In the heart of the Golden Flower Dynasty, ordinary land is incredibly valuable, and spiritual lands capable of cultivating magical plants are even rarer and more expensive.

Regularly employed monks simply do not meet the requirements for training.

Despite its immense potential and seemingly wonderful prospects, under multiple restrictions, no one is willing to spend two precious first-class merit points to exchange for the [Spiritual Root Fungus Mother].

But Gaode's gaze was completely captivated the moment he saw it:

There was simply nothing that could excite him more.

While other monks lacked the necessary conditions for establishing a base, he possessed a uniquely advantageous environment.

He doesn't have a magic plant garden, but in the North, he has the ever-growing Flora Forest, which is planted with a huge number of magic trees that are still increasing. It is also a natural magic plant cultivation base.

The effect of this [Spirit Root Mother] in his hands will be unprecedented.

It can activate the cultivation potential of magical plants in Flora Forest, and the output value will be infinitely amplified, far exceeding the exchange cost of two first-class merits.

Without much deliberation, Gaode immediately agreed to the exchange.

With one first-class merit still remaining, he continued flipping through the pages of [Starfall Coating Medium] (First-class merit *1)

[This is a refining medium made from celestial debris, which can be applied to the surface of magical weapons, robes, and protective accessories to solidify a thin layer of meteorite armor, slightly increasing spell resistance and physical strength. It is a high-level, one-time-use reinforcement material.]

This is not a raw material for crafting alchemical items, but rather a reinforcement material, which is not a core necessity for Gaode Maps.

Skip to the next part.

[Molten Giant Spine Fragment] (First-Class Merit *1): Core skeleton material for forging the Fire Giant Staff, with a small amount of fire affinity...

[Void Eel Skin Bag] (First-Class Merit*1): Can be crafted into a protective outer robe for use in abyssal environments, providing excellent insulation against corrosive gases and high-temperature steam...

【Ancient Wood Core】(First-Class Merit*1): The condensed wood essence within the trunk of a thousand-year-old tree. It can be used for crafting high-level wood-attribute staves or integrating wood-type spell amplifiers...

As the list was nearing its end, Gaode felt a slight sense of disappointment.

He never saw anything that could move him as much as the [Spirit Root Fungus Mother].

If Gao Deben doesn't find anything particularly satisfactory, he will choose one from the treasures on the shortlist.

Only then did he turn to the very end of the list.

A piece of supplies that had been listed for almost half a year but had remained untouched caught the eye of Gaode Maps.

【Void-Bound Primal Stone】

【Natural void stone produced from dimensional fissures and crevices, a single rock block is just enough to meet the paving needs of a small mage tower binding chamber. This stone naturally possesses the property of blocking dimensional energy, and can continuously suppress the effects of teleportation, interdimensional portals, and any form of dimensional travel spells without the need for infusion of magic. It is the core building material for constructing mage tower binding chambers.

Its texture is brittle, so it should not be cut again before laying and must be transported as a whole.

A handwritten copy of the "Outline for Laying Out Restraints" is included for your reference.

[Military Merit Required for Exchange: First-Class Merit *1]

Mage Tower building materials... Gaode's gaze lingered on this entry for a long time.

A complete mage tower should include six major facilities: core, defense, summoning, space, research, and logistics areas.

The binding space is an indispensable core supporting facility in the summoning system.

It is the fundamental prerequisite for the safe confinement, research, and dismantling of otherworldly summoned objects.

Conventional stone, metal, and magical walls are useless against high-level otherworldly creatures.

They have countless ways of passing through walls or returning to their original plane.

Voidbound Stone is currently the only known dimensional barrier material that requires no magical maintenance and is permanently effective.

It can directly erase the target's dimensional coordinates, completely depriving the imprisoned otherworldly creatures of the medium for teleportation and jump.

All dimensional spells will instantly disintegrate and become ineffective upon contact with the surface of the primordial stone.

This unique and irreplaceable steady-state binding ability makes it an essential core material for constructing high-level mage tower binding chambers, and there is no substitute for it.

From this perspective, the value of the Voidbound Stone is beyond doubt.

Its unpopularity is not due to a lack of value, but rather to its high barrier to entry.

The construction of the Mage Tower requires a massive amount of resources.

Let alone a fifth-ring mage, even a sixth-ring mage might not be able to own their own mage tower.

Furthermore, a complete mage tower requires several years and spans several mage levels to be gradually built.

In the construction of the Mage Tower, the Binding Space is not a high priority; it is only used as a supporting facility for the summoning system and belongs to the mid-to-late game reinforcement module.

The vast majority of mages are not capable of undertaking the core preliminary work of building a mage tower.

Therefore, the raw material requirements for a low-priority facility within the Mage Tower are naturally very low.

Therefore, even though it is very valuable and requires relatively low military merit, it is still an extremely unpopular skill.

But Gaode was tempted.

This is exactly what he wants.

If the Northern Territory wants to truly establish itself on the continent of Nolan, make a grand "debut," and gain recognition and awe from the outside world, a compliant, complete mage tower with high-level deterrent power is essential.

It is the core symbol of strength and the trump card.

You don't even have a mage tower within your territory, so why should other forces take you seriously?

A territory without a mage tower means that without top-tier spellcasters to oversee it and without a deep foundation in magic, it can only ever be classified as a marginal secondary power, unable to rise to the level of the orthodox forces.

For a long time, Gaode and Sunaifa have been steadily laying the groundwork for the construction of the Mage Tower, continuously accumulating various building materials, blueprints and construction knowledge.

Since building the mage tower is an inevitable part of the plan, there's no reason not to miss out on such core infrastructure resources.

A first-class merit can be exchanged for many good things, but if you miss this Voidbound Stone, finding a second one will not be an easy task.

At least in all the places I've been to, I've never heard of anyone selling Voidbound Stones.

These things are usually intercepted and kept within the various factions.

Even if they are not needed in the short term, they will not be easily sold, and they rarely enter the open market, making them a rare find.

Even this time, it's actually the same: the First-Class Merit Exchange Vault is actually an internal channel of the Sea Sentinels.

Gaode Maps did not hesitate any longer and quickly finalized the redemption plan:

One first-class merit can be exchanged for the spell recipe of [Spell Stabilization], two first-class merits can be exchanged for [Spirit Root Mother], and one first-class merit can be exchanged for [Void Binding Stone].

This exchange strategy is quite unconventional among military mages who prioritize immediate combat power and exchanging for combat consumables.

Only a spellcaster like Gao De, whose foundation far surpasses that of his peers and whose combat power is sufficient, has the confidence to invest all his precious merits in long-term resources that yield no short-term gains.

He immediately told the staff what he wanted to exchange for.

The staff checked the inventory list and, although they noticed two items were uncommon, they did not ask any further questions.

They skillfully registered and cataloged the records, retrieved Gaode's merit files, deducted the corresponding amount, and had him sign to confirm before assigning dedicated staff to retrieve the supplies.

Not long after, three staff members came in, each carrying a sealed container of a different size, and placed the items side by side on the empty table.

The staff member stepped aside to make room and gestured to the three containers, indicating that Gaode Maps could verify the information themselves.

Gao De stepped forward and inspected the three hard-won high-level supplies one by one.

On the left is a dark gray box with two rows of fine ventilation holes on the side of the lid.

The aperture is as fine as a needle tip, and the holes are evenly and neatly arranged.

The box walls are icy to the touch; when you place your fingertips on them, you can feel a deep, continuous chill.

Gaode opened the box.

A very faint, damp, earthy scent rose from the box, mixed with a hint of the bitter taste unique to fungi.

What comes into view is a layer of dark brown active moss.

The moss layer was about two fingers thick, with a moist and even surface. In the center of the moss lay a fist-sized, irregularly shaped lump with a texture like dried tree bark.

The surface is dark brown and covered with fine, irregular mesh patterns.

Some are deep and some are shallow, like the traces left by tree roots naturally spreading in the soil.

Each line ends with a tiny, milky-white bud, about the size of a sesame seed, densely covering the entire outer surface of the mother fungus.

The buds were all closed and had not yet extended outwards, but each one was plump and round, without any signs of shriveling or dents.

It exhibits good activity.

Gaode mentally reviewed the status, then closed the lid.

In the center was a long black box. Inside, when opened, lay a scroll containing a spell recipe.

There's really no need to check this much; Gaode only glanced at it before turning his gaze to the right.

It was a much larger hardwood box.

The staff handed over a brass key, and Gaode took the key to unlock and open the box.

Inside the box was a dark gray, square, and solid raw stone with a rough and natural surface texture.

It completely lacks the aura and fluctuations of conventional magical materials, and its magical reaction cannot even be detected by detection spells. Its appearance is similar to an ordinary stubborn rock.

Beside the raw stone lay a handwritten book with yellowed pages, which was the accompanying "Outline for Laying Out Binding Space".

Gao De picked it up and flipped through it briefly. The handwriting was neat, recording the construction details of the confinement space line by line.

After the entire verification process was completed, there were no issues with the condition, status, or accompanying documentation of the three items.

After Gaode finished doing all this, the staff took out three pages of receipts stamped with a magic seal and handed them to him.

After Gaode signed and confirmed the documents, he directly asked the staff to deliver them to his residence.

At this point, he had used up all the military merits he had accumulated.

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