Although the market was not far from the restaurant, Robin chose to take the longer route, looking around the entire way, astonished by everything. From time to time, he stopped to buy fruits or simple items, examining them with childlike excitement.
The meal and the walk were simply opportunities for him to see more of the world through his new ability.
About an hour later, the two arrived at the central market—and it was truly worthy of Bradley's Pearl City. Many times larger than Jura's market, it sprawled with shops of all sizes and shapes. Guards and powerful experts roamed the streets like ants, while small merchants spread their goods on sheets across the ground, shouting loudly in hopes of earning enough to one day rent a proper shop.
Robin also noticed several large platforms crowded with naked men and women of all ages, while announcers shouted their qualities and prices:
"Come closer! I have everything you want! The most beautiful and the ugliest of women, the strongest of men and the weakest of them! Whether your coin is little or great, you will not leave without a slave to satisfy your desires!"
It was clear—these were the slave platforms.
Robin paused in front of one, eyeing a boy slightly younger than himself, deep in thought. Then he nodded and walked away."When we return to the institution," he said, "ask if it's permitted to keep slaves in our personal residence. If it is, find out the maximum number allowed per student."
Caesar was baffled. Why would Robin even consider such a thing? They had always lived independently, without help—least of all from slaves. But he only nodded, not daring to argue.
Soon, they reached a massive store selling every type of wood imaginable. Robin bought small amounts of each kind… but the final pile was enormous. When the two stood before it, Caesar's jaw dropped.
Robin gave him a meaningful look and gestured at the mountain of wood.
"Not a chance! OVER MY DEAD BODY!" Caesar shouted, stumbling back. "How the hell am I supposed to carry all of this? Are you trying to kill me?!"
Robin shook his head. "The youth of today are useless. Uncle, add a wooden cart as well. How much is the total?"
He handed over a gold coin and a few silver pieces for everything, then left with Caesar, who trudged along pulling the cart beside him.
Back at the house, Robin sat downstairs before the sorted piles of wood. Caesar had neatly arranged each type into its own stack. Robin frowned in concentration."Alright. I'll begin studying the Major Heavenly Law of Fire while training toward the second level of energy cultivation. Don't you dare come downstairs and disturb me—unless the house catches fire, in which case, put it out… or put me out. I trust you'll know what to do. Dismissed."
Caesar chuckled and went upstairs. Left alone, Robin brought a handful of wood from the first pile, set it aflame, and sat watching. Patterns shimmered in the flames, denser near the wood and fading as the fire rose.
He did not move for days, until he had burned through the first pile. With a sigh of wonder, he shook his head. Before this, I was like a blind man wandering in a strange land.
After eating, he resumed his cultivation. For seven days he consumed energy stones, pushing himself halfway to the second level in a single effort. Then he returned to his experiments with the next pile of wood, which produced flames even more vivid than the first.
Robin's purpose was simple: to test whether different woods produced flames with clearer patterns—or if all were the same. But when he lit the second pile while casually eating a chicken leg, his expression shifted from anticipation to shock.
The patterns… they're different!
"No. No, that's not supposed to happen. What's going on?!" Robin muttered, leaning closer to the fire. Most of the patterns were the same as before, but a few were subtly different.
How could the same law produce multiple sets of patterns? It was well known that each major law had countless branches called minor laws, and of course those branches carried distinct patterns. But this was pure fire—not sparks, not heat, not melting or evaporation. The pattern should not change!
Or so he had thought.
After a moment of disbelief, Robin thrust the chicken leg into the flames. As he expected, the surrounding patterns shifted again.
He quickly got up to pick out small batches of all the wood and put them separately then lit them all at once, fetched his bed-sheet, bread, papers, and a few other random items then lit them separately as well... and in each pile, the patterns were a little different!
"Impossible… The Flame Emperor could not have missed something so fundamental when he claimed mastery of the Major Heavenly Law of Fire. At best, his understanding came from observing fire's actions and truths over thousands of years. Outwardly, fire may appear the same—but what I see now denies that completely! Could it be… that the Fire Law upon which the Flame Empire was built… is incomplete?!"
No… not just that. What about the rest of the so-called 'completed' Major Laws? Are they only relatively complete?
The thought made Robin break into a sweat. Perhaps from the towering flames licking the ceiling… but he chose to believe it was from tension and excitement.
"Is this what that all-seeing big brother meant, when he said the planet is still nascent, and that I should take things slowly as I observe the patterns?
What a pressure... what a responsibility... WHAT A THRILL!! Hahahaha I've got the whole world to explore with no strings attached, when I'm done with it won't be nascent anymore! HAHAHA" Robin said jumping excitedly as Caesar tried to rescue what was left of the living room.