Chapter Twenty-One: Preparation

After leaving Moritz, Lando walked and pondered. Without a doubt, the condition Moritz mentioned most likely referred to the purple soul. He glanced at the system: [Soul: Blue (100%)], [Source Essence Crystal: 3 (Purple)]. To advance to a purple soul, at least one purple source essence crystal was needed, with a maximum of ten; certainly, ten would be optimal. Attempting advancement with fewer would diminish his potential in the future.

Yet that highest-level assessment was, for him, a rare and precious opportunity. If he could stand out then, the benefits would be immeasurable. Having wrestled with these thoughts for a long time without reaching any conclusion, he could only put the matter aside for now and reconsider it when the time came.

Back at his dormitory, Lando organized his upcoming tasks. Studying the intelligent core had to become a priority, and it was time to begin learning about arcane knowledge as well as finding sources for soul essence.

Speaking of the arcane, one could not avoid addressing the evolution of arcanists. In the earliest days, arcanists, like magicians and sorcerers, placed immense importance on the application of arcane arts, giving rise to an astonishingly flourishing array of schools. The nine great arcane disciplines—Protection, Evocation, Divination, Enchantment, Illusion, Shaping, Necromancy, Transmutation, and General—became the foundation of the entire Arcane Empire.

Back then, arcanists seeking combat power had to study and record numerous arcane templates, which even led to the distinction between Scholarly Arcanists and Battle Arcanists. Scholarly Arcanists focused on research, the exploration and application of fundamental theories, while Battle Arcanists devoted themselves to the study of practical arcane arts.

This clear division of labor did indeed boost efficiency, and with the occasional genius emerging, achievements were made in both fields. Yet, as one of the universe’s truths goes—change is the only constant—the arcane disciplines continued to develop and evolve. Gradually, arcanists discovered that when some fundamental arcane arts were combined and transformed, the energy they produced far exceeded all expectations. The old arcane system was thus shaken to its core.

Take the Silver Tower, where Lando resided, as an example. After the construction of the Arcane Furnace began, arcanists there needed only to master a single basic arcane art.

Construction: A basic arcane art capable of manipulating matter and altering its form. Originally, this was only a minor trick within the Transmutation discipline, scarcely even considered true arcane arts. Yet, if one possessed enough knowledge of weaponry, this arcane art could directly transform metal into weapons.

Of course, at first, only ordinary cold weapons could be fashioned. To create floating cannons, elemental bombs, mechanical golems, or even spaceships, other conditions had to be met. Thus, arcanists of today’s schools need only systematically master a few arcane arts to effortlessly convert their knowledge into combat power.

When Lando first learned of the Silver Tower’s combat system, he was inexplicably excited, thinking his knowledge of military affairs from his previous life might finally be useful. But after perusing the Silver Tower’s “Latest Comprehensive Guide to Basic Weapons,” he decided the memories of his past life were best left undisturbed.

...

A month later.

Lando stared at a piece of metal in his hands. Slowly, the metal began to melt. When it reformed, it had become a greatsword, its surface inscribed with flickering runes of flame that radiated a faint heat.

The process was not exactly fast, taking almost five minutes, but Lando was satisfied. In this time, after mastering the Construction arcane art, he had rapidly supplemented his knowledge of weapons, from simple cold steel to the intricate mechanisms of crossbows.

Today, he took it a step further: enchanting the weapon as he forged it, thus maximizing his combat power before the Arcane Furnace was fully built.

The reason he was in such a rush to improve his combat ability, instead of following his original plan to study intelligent core manufacturing, was simple—he was out of money.

The Silver Tower’s education actually required no expenses from its students; all needs were generously provided for. Even dining at Old Moore’s kitchen allowed for credit. Furthermore, each month came with a fixed allocation of academic credits, along with materials for cultivation, elemental arrays in training rooms, and temporary protective arrays in dormitories—everything a student could need. All that was expected was for them to study diligently.

But for Lando, this was far from enough. He had considered many ways to acquire soul essence: acquiring antiques or ancient items, slaying certain intelligent beings, and obtaining necromancy-related objects.

The second method was impossible within the academy, and the third was out of the question—if the teachers learned he was inquiring about necromancy, they would undoubtedly summon him for a “heart-to-heart talk.”

The most reliable was the first: he had already located an antique shop. He didn’t actually need to purchase anything; with the right soul, proximity alone sufficed to extract it. The problem was... the antique shop displayed only holographic images! To see a real item, one had to pay a deposit first, though with the option of a refund if dissatisfied.

Thus, he was stuck. He couldn’t ask anyone else for help—what would people think of a teenager with such an odd fascination for antiques? It would be obvious he had something to hide.

He had also researched ways to make money. The simplest was to join a research lab; with a decent result, selling it to a guild would earn enough to live comfortably for life. In a nation ruled by arcanists, such policies were well-established.

Another way was to help the academy explore new worlds—not in the way Carter once did, of course. The Silver Tower, like every discipline, had its own scouting teams that roamed the void in search of new worlds, sending coordinates back to their branch, which would then dispatch explorers for preliminary surveys and evaluations.

To avoid mistakes in assessing value, usually three to five teams would enter separately. Worlds deemed to have little or no value would have exploration tasks assigned again within the academy. If a student could discover hidden worth, that was ideal, but most of the time these missions served as practice and broadening of horizons.

Other ways to earn money, such as registering with a guild or crafting and selling enchanted weapons, were hardly worth mentioning—too time-consuming and not very profitable.

Thus, Lando had been boosting his combat power in order to take on one of these exploration missions. While there was no guarantee of profit, they might yield the soul essence he needed.

After all, he was flat broke.

Arcanist (Arcane Furnace 50%)

The framework of Lando’s Arcane Furnace was now complete—the result of this period’s efforts. The price, however, was a soul essence already reduced to double digits.