Chapter Seventy-Two: "Grotesque" and Inspiration

In the laboratory, Aldo was quietly reading when his body suddenly flickered, as if he were a virtual projection disrupted by interference.

“It’s starting already? That was fast!” With those words, he vanished completely.

……

At the heart of the Arcane Empire, countless worlds had been forcibly fused together by arcanists, their world membranes stripped away, to form a vast void-realm.

On the edge of this void-realm lay a fertile land, above which five floating cities drifted in the sky. The central city was far larger than its companions, its entire structure a shimmering silver, densely packed with research institutes of every kind. At its core rose a towering silver spire, triangular in cross-section, thrusting toward the heavens with imposing majesty.

The four surrounding floating cities appeared much more ordinary by comparison, bustling with a mix of guilds, laboratories, and research institutes, their streets lively with constant traffic.

At that moment, within one floor of the silver spire—

Aldo got up from his bed, stretched, and declared, “This is Aldo, reporting current status.”

“Acting Tower Master Aldo, authentication successful!”

“A trace of the specially marked object has been discovered. Coordinates: XXXXX.YYYYY. Lord Simon Hawk and Lord Noel Brennan have already reached the vicinity, accompanied by two lords from Grey Tower and thirty-one legendary arcanists with the proper clearance.”

Simon Hawk was the disciple of the Seventh Arcane Emperor and the founder of the Silver Spire. Noel Brennan was Simon’s student and the second-generation master of the tower; both were grand arcanists.

Aldo spoke as he walked, “They actually managed to lure out one of those bizarre entities? I’d like to see it for myself! Ready the ship and send me there as quickly as possible.”

“Yes, sir!”

……

“Lord Lando, you wish to use your development dividends to acquire antiques and relics from various worlds on a long-term basis?” Toru was clearly surprised by Lando’s request.

“Yes. I was quite pleased with the last batch, so I’d like to make this a regular arrangement,” Lando replied earnestly. After all, this was about acquiring soul essence, so he wanted Toru to see his determination.

“I’m honored you were satisfied. Well then, if that’s your wish, I’ll certainly try to meet it. How much do you intend to invest? I should remind you that profits from this world’s development are still zero; the Aerial Grass won’t yield returns for at least a year, and other products are still being evaluated. However, if you require, we can estimate future profits and pay you in advance,” Toru said. Meeting client needs was his guiding principle—one he firmly believed in.

“Very good. How much did the last batch cost?” Lando was pleased with Toru’s response.

Toru thought for a moment, then said, “Based on your projected future earnings, you could receive about five times last time’s quantity per month, if converted into antiques and relics. Of course, since prices vary between worlds, and the more we buy, the higher the price will climb—you’ll need to keep that in mind.”

Last time, Lando had banked about 1,000 points of soul essence. Five times that per month would mean 5,000, or roughly 60,000 a year. Of course, there could be fluctuations, and it was possible that first batch’s 1,000 points had been a stroke of luck, with future averages being much lower. Still, for him, these investments were sure to be profitable.

“All of it, then. Let’s start with one year. If anything changes, we’ll adjust,” Lando decided.

“Very well. I’ll bring you a shipment of antiques and relics every month,” Toru replied with a smile. As long as there was business, there was profit to be made.

After settling the transaction process with Toru and politely declining the invitation to enjoy the entertainment world—after all, what pleasure could compare to crafting golems?—Lando left.

……

Aldo stared speechless at the bizarre object, now compressed to the size of a fist and locked down by three floating cities.

“Thirty-one legendary arcanists, five grand arcanists, two Heavenfall Golems from Grey Tower, and even our Silver Spire’s secret White Fortress now within range—Lord Simon, are you certain we’ve assembled all this power just for this thing?!”

Just then, perhaps out of curiosity, one legendary arcanist dared to step closer for a better look at the captured anomaly. He had barely moved when Simon lashed out with a beam of elemental brilliance and sent him flying.

Simon swept his gaze around the room, and all conversation ceased at once.

“You reckless youngsters have no idea what you’re dealing with. Even a ‘Grotesque’ is not to be underestimated. Its very nature is unlike anything we know—it can parasitize both the conscious thoughts of the sane and the fanciful dreams of the delusional, and is nearly impossible to detect. If allowed to grow unchecked, one day the twisted part of you will tear the rational part apart. We paid dearly for this knowledge, with many sacrifices!” Simon’s words sent a chill through the arcanists who had not lived through that old war.

Seeing their reaction, Simon knew his warning had taken effect. Arcanists, after all, were rational and cautious by nature. Arrogant ones were not unheard of, but such people rarely became legendary arcanists.

……

Lando was deeply satisfied with his current life, finding it far richer than his previous one. When inspiration struck, he could spend days in the lab crafting golems. When he grew tired, he would seek out Old Moore for a gourmet meal to relax. Of course, there were occasional moments of loneliness; though Carter now had a new mentor as the acting tower master, he still enjoyed wandering, and his talents didn’t allow him to draw as many support resources as Lando. Alice, meanwhile, remained missing. In the entire academy, these were the only people Lando was close to.

So, whenever boredom crept in, Lando would interact with Little Grey, though most conversations ended in mute silence—such was the fate of being the master!

Today was the day to receive a new batch of antiques and relics—the sixth since the arrangement was made. Twice, he’d gotten about three thousand, twice five thousand, and once hit a stroke of luck, netting two blue souls and over ten thousand soul essence in total—a prize draw that left Lando wanting more, already looking forward to today’s lucky number.

During this period, Lando had also visited the Four Kings’ World several times, subtly hinting at his preferences to the head of the Magic Academy, Maxima—the middle-aged arcanist he’d met before. The headmaster, eager to build connections with the rising star of the Silver Spire, had regretted missing opportunities during Aldo and Lando’s last visit. Now, with Lando’s hint, he had readily agreed, and as a result, Lando gained another ten thousand soul essence and a few fine additions to his antique collection.

After neatly arranging the new batch of antiques in his warehouse and seeing his accumulated soul essence surpass fifty thousand, Lando felt a surge of satisfaction. Originally, these were being saved to further enhance his Elemental Body, so much so that even improving his purple soul had become a secondary concern. But lately—perhaps from making too many golems—he’d been struck by a peculiar idea, and had been debating for days whether to act on it.

Today, he resolved to make up his mind.

After all, for an arcanist, inspiration is a rare and precious gift!

PS: Thank you all for your recommendations, collections, comments, likes, rewards, and support. I am truly moved—your encouragement is the driving force behind my writing. Once again, thank you all!