978: The Intentions of Witch Yekaterina, Meeting Witch Zoe Again, and the Power Gem!
Locke replied, "Yes, Teacher. I asked the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion to help me find Lady Sea Queen Throne, as I wish to study Potions under her." "Because Golden Crown Mountain does not have a very good Potions lineage, and I want to continue down the path of Potions."
Witch Yekaterina nodded and said, "She is a very famous Potion Master. But apart from the field of Potions, in other aspects..." Witch Yekaterina pursed her lips, seemingly unwilling to continue the topic. She then picked up an exquisite, luxurious gilded fan from the table, fanned herself a few times, and said, "This person is also riddled with debt and has nearly gone bankrupt several times."
"According to the information I have, although her talent and ability in the field of Potions are outstanding, she frequently goes bankrupt when managing her laboratory and the Shop Alliance."
Locke was stunned for a moment, because for a Potion Master capable of concocting high-level Potions to go bankrupt, it was indeed quite difficult.
Possessing the ability to concoct high-level Potions was equivalent to having a stable cash flow. She could devote all her time to concocting high-level Potions; at worst, she could sell her time in exchange for a certain amount of magic stones.
According to his assumptions, precious Potions like high-level Potions would never lack buyers, which meant that every master-level Potion Master should be a powerful cash cow.
How on earth did Lady Sea Queen Throne manage things to end up on the verge of bankruptcy several times? Was her Potion experimentation too aggressive? Did she fail to control costs?
Witch Yekaterina glanced at Locke and said, "The main problem is that she is addicted to smoking, alcohol, and gambling, and is proficient in all the things in the Wizard World that are easy to get addicted to. Furthermore, this witch loves to sign gambling agreements at the wine table."
Witch Yekaterina raised an eyebrow and looked at Locke, saying, "It is indeed not bad for you to study Potions with her. It is just that she happens to be a highly talented Potion Master; if it weren't for these bad habits holding her back, she could very likely have advanced further. As for her theory of genius, just listen to it and leave it at that. According to that theory, neither you nor I would have had the chance to enter Golden Crown Mountain."
Witch Yekaterina said, "In my opinion, this might be because this Potion Master is only good at Potions, not at teaching Potions." "Because according to her views on genius... I find it hard to see her value as a Wizard mentor. Reasonably developing a Wizard's potential, or helping them recognize their own inner potential, is what a Wizard mentor should do. It is also what you will do in the future, or rather, what you are doing now."
"You are my outstanding student. But the strength of a high-ring Wizard lies not only in themselves, but also in their ability to inspirationally bring their strength to others."
Witch Yekaterina put down the folding fan in her hand and placed it on the table, saying, "Consequently, your surroundings will be filled with outstanding people. To some extent, I am indeed someone who loves to cultivate others, especially when I see the students I have cultivated are so outstanding; I feel gratified."
"Both you and Zeno are outstanding students I brought up in this batch. As for Wizard Zhuoma... well, he is considered clever, but it is a pity that he is still far from being outstanding. As for the others, there is no need to comment."
"But it is not enough for you to be outstanding yourselves; if you can make your students become outstanding as well, you will be able to go further. This is my view."
Locke looked at Witch Yekaterina.
Witch Yekaterina smiled and said, "Cultivating others is cultivating oneself; one day you will have the feelings I have now. There should be that day. Locke, for a Wizard to continue to advance, one needs to cultivate one's own academic lineage and have one's own core circle." "I assigned two students I hold in high regard to you and Zeno at the same time. I hope you two will not disappoint me and will teach your students well. Locke, Planknia is an outstanding student I hold in high regard; although she is not yet qualified to be taught directly by me, I have handed her over to you. I hope she can become excellent under your guidance."
Locke stood up and bowed to Witch Yekaterina, saying, "Teacher, I will teach her well."
Witch Yekaterina changed the subject and said to Locke, "Besides that, my key individual project itself is the creation of marriage rings. The ring part is divided into two parts: the setting and the inlaid gemstone."
"The setting part requires planting a special Magic Plant and accelerating its growth; this part was originally... handled by Esther. But because of her sudden departure, this has led to a shortage of manpower on my side. However, this is something that only a Sun-Ring Wizard can accelerate the growth of, so I cannot hand it to you."
Locke nodded. This was not a question of trust, but a question of ability. He was indeed quite far from being a Sun-Ring Wizard, and it would be very difficult to replace the work of a Sun-Ring Wizard.
A key member within a Throne Wizard's team, even if not a Third-Ring Wizard, is at least a Sun-Ring Wizard.
Witch Yekaterina's eyes flickered, and she took out a seed, saying, "So I have arranged for you the work of cultivating special gemstones. Cultivating gemstones requires planting this type of Magic Plant seed that is unique to me, which absolutely cannot be found in the outside world. This seed is indeed very difficult to plant, but fortunately, Trajan has optimized it using the Grafting Cultivation Method as part of his past key individual project. He spent about five years on it." Witch Yekaterina smiled, her eyes curving.
"It caused him to be delayed in graduating by two years because of it."
"It is not that I did it on purpose; it is just that the sub-projects of the key individual project are inherently difficult to do."
"I will have Trajan send the seed to your original body, which is at the White Cardamom Farm. Locke, how do you feel about being at the White Cardamom Farm?"
Locke was stunned for a moment, "Teacher, the White Cardamom Farm has many wonderful aspects to me; even just the outer perimeter is already very advanced." "I..."
Witch Yekaterina shook her head slightly.
Locke observed Witch Yekaterina's reaction and wisely did not continue. Because the other party seemed to dislike him praising the White Cardamom Farm.
That was not right. The White Cardamom Farm was an important asset of Golden Crown Mountain and core property of the Academic Committee. Why would his teacher frown when he praised the White Cardamom Farm for its profoundness?
Locke began to ponder deeply.
Witch Yekaterina said, "Only the Hanging Gardens are the future of our academy's Breeders. You will know in the future."
"Locke, the seed of this Iron Tree that I have given you should be able to help you. This project was previously handled by Trajan, so you can learn the relevant information from him; it will be more detailed than the information you get from me."
Locke immediately realized his teacher's admiration for the Hanging Gardens and her disdain for the White Cardamom Farm. Why was this?
Witch Yekaterina said, "You must plant the Iron Tree well; this can help you a great deal in the future. In addition, I have a request: you must let Witch Planknia and the Wizards from the Senate... if they want to join your team, you must let them participate in the process of planting the Iron Tree."
"This is an important experiment; you and they will both learn many things from it and gain a great deal."
Locke said, "But Teacher, Witch Planknia is, after all, deeply connected to the Senate. Is it okay to let them get the key experimental data of your sub-project?"
Witch Yekaterina smiled and said, "Locke, you are truly considerate. I want to thank you for your thoughtfulness. However, you don't need to worry about this matter; it doesn't matter if the Senate obtains all the data for this project. I should say I welcome them to get it."
Locke was completely confused, but seeing that his teacher was not going to explain, he felt embarrassed to ask.
He always felt that there seemed to be some huge secret hidden within Witch Planknia, this small Gasification Wizard. This secret might not be on her, but it seemed to be related to her.
This might involve the factional infighting within Golden Crown Mountain.
Furthermore, he had currently completed all the projects of the Academy of True Knowledge. Now he could choose to conclude the project within the Academy of True Knowledge, or he could take the things to another Wizard academy.
However, it would be good to finish the two projects at the Academy of True Knowledge while he was at it; after all, taking them away would be very troublesome, and turning them into his own qualifications would maximize his own interests. He would also be able to leave with a light heart. The premise was that he could conclude the projects as soon as possible.
There was another problem, which was Witch Yekaterina's attitude toward his graduation, because none of her previous core students had left Golden Crown Mountain. And just now, when Witch Yekaterina was talking to him, it was as if she defaulted to him staying at Golden Crown Mountain forever, with a time span of about five years or more.
This made Locke sense something ominous. Witch Yekaterina was like a sun; the sun had huge gravity, and being too close would be a problem, and being too far away would not work either. At the moment, he was indeed enjoying resources exceeding those of ordinary senior researchers and the resource tilt of the Red Dragon Lineage, which created a situation similar to Liliths Cottage, except that he had not signed any contract with the Red Dragon Lineage.
But now the Red Dragon Lineage was gradually entrusting him with important tasks. And Witch Yekaterina was different from the Wizards on the Senate side; she seemed to completely ignore the fact that he had already met the conditions for graduation and could already graduate. This made him unsure of the Red Dragon Witch's attitude.
Moreover, if he graduated at this moment and stayed at Golden Crown Mountain, he could immediately join the Red Dragon Witch's team; he imagined he could quickly elevate his faculty position at Golden Crown Mountain. His mentor was so prestigious at Golden Crown Mountain, so this was actually a good choice for him. This was a question of being a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond.
However, Locke's eyes were firm. He wanted to go to the Starry Sea, not for the Starry Sea or anything else, but to be able to walk on the path of the top geniuses of the Wizard World and go to the most advanced front line. For this, he had to compete with countless competitors.
"The average magic level of the Starry Sea's grand exam is Moon Ring. I am still at Star Ring, so there is no rush to go to the Starry Sea for now. After all, Teacher Sophia's situation is very special." "I cannot compare with her. Her situation is basically hard to become the norm." "And I have quite a lot of trouble on me right now, and I can still access many resources at Golden Crown Mountain. Wanting to become a Moon Ring Wizard requires a large amount of resources."
Locke mused, "And gradually raising my status in front of my teacher can also allow me to gradually gain a more important position. The Silver-clad Peach Garden is one such achievement; only in this way can I have the resources to become a Moon Ring Wizard and go to the grand exam." "Therefore, now that the situation is unclear, there is no need for me to discuss this issue with Teacher Yekaterina. After all, judging from the current situation, there is no great need to leave Golden Crown Mountain before becoming a Moon Ring Wizard." Now he could strive to gain greater trust from Witch Yekaterina, no longer as a junior who needs to be cultivated, but as a capable assistant, so as to increase his voice in her team. In this way, he would be in a position where he could advance or retreat. Regardless of what happens at the grand exam, his status and treatment at Golden Crown Mountain would be stable.
AI Model: gemini-2.5-flash
Secondly, this would increase his influence and give Witch Ekaterina some return, making it easier for him to propose not staying at the academy in the future without angering her.
Locke said to Witch Ekaterina, "Okay, teacher, I will do as you ask."
Witch Ekaterina said, "I look forward to your performance at White Cardamom Farm."
"In addition, I have some benefits within our academic lineage that I want to give you, which will make it easier for you to integrate into other gardens on Golden Crown Mountain in the future. Of course, some of my unique magic inheritances, special breeding methods, and some special spell models of Peach Arc Thorn Arrow can now be taught to you. This way, I can entrust you with more important tasks."
"Wait until you finish your business along the Tianjiang Coast."
Witch Ekaterina clearly still wanted Locke to earn more military merits within the academic lineage.
"Rewards and punishments must be clear."
"When you finish things over there, I will have reason to use academic lineage resources to allow you to prematurely enjoy a resource that only Official Wizard mentors on Golden Crown Mountain possess. Every step you take from now on, the resources consumed can be described as astronomical. You need to accumulate more resources; you should learn how to collect resources. The resources before the Star Ring... the quantity required is not outrageous, but the Moon Ring is different. I believe you will soon experience this process."
Locke bowed to her again, realizing that the problem had indeed arisen. In Witch Ekaterina's eyes, it was assumed that he would stay at the academy. But he genuinely did not want to leave before the Moon Ring.
Because here he could enjoy many blessings from the Red Dragon Lineage, and he could more easily establish a Shop Alliance. Although his Wizard Shoes Shop Alliance was built through his own efforts, if it weren't for his teacher's influence, he might have been attacked by a Sun Ring Black Wizard as soon as he stepped out.
Or various pressures from the Holy Tribunal would have come pouring in.
Secondly, he wanted to open more Shop Alliances in the Yunze Wetlands and the Eastern Realm, which also required the help of the academic lineage. The more help he wanted, the more he had to enter the core of the Red Dragon Lineage's power.
And the more help he received, the lower the probability his teacher would let him go.
Unless he could offer something in return to his teacher.
Therefore, Locke silently made up his mind: first, to improve his strength and increase his influence; second, to find a way to create something that would allow him to leave, something that Witch Ekaterina would not only not be angry about, but would also continue to use her influence to protect him. This way, his Shop Alliance in the Yunze Wetlands and even the surrounding areas could be preserved.
Locke also thought of a third thing.
That is, he might be able to ask Witch Ekaterina for a letter of recommendation in the future.
Of course, that would be a matter for the future.
The premise of his departure was that he had to find a way to pass the Moon Ring, otherwise there seemed to be no need to consider the grand examination of the Starry Sea. According to Witch Sophia's senior brother, there seemed to be some secret within this grand examination, information he hadn't grasped, because in the other party's understanding, the minimum standard was Moon Ring to take the exam, and it was best for Sun Ring to take it.
As for the specific information, he would inquire about it slowly later.
As a Star Ring Wizard, he should be able to find out.
Witch Ekaterina looked at Locke and said, "By the way, Locke, there's a vacancy in the Great Magic inheritance among the Six Teas at Luxu Bridge. If you're willing, I can apply for that Great Magic inheritance for you."
Locke was surprised.
"Teacher, I have already constructed my own Great Magic, can I still construct other Great Magic?"
Witch Ekaterina smiled, "Many Great Magic among the Six Teas, Twelve Demon Peaches, and Three Meters are enhancement-type Great Magic. For example, your Tree of Prosperity can be combined with the Six Teas Great Magic. As a tea tree, the Tree of Prosperity has almost no impact on the construction of your Great Magic itself. After all, the type of tree has no conflict with Spring Prosperity."
Locke nodded, but he sensed that Witch Ekaterina was beginning to offer him benefits, gradually tilting the scales to make him favor staying on Golden Crown Mountain.
But Locke believed that as long as he showed his ability and determination, with Witch Ekaterina's personality, she would readily write him a letter of recommendation and let him leave Golden Crown Mountain.
He could also use the oldest method of wizards—a transaction.
Locke politely refused, "Teacher, my Tree of Prosperity has incorporated divine power lineage, and I need to find a way to purify the power system of my Great Magic. I really don't want to add more things. Otherwise, I'm worried it will affect subsequent magic forging."
Witch Ekaterina nodded. "Good."
"This is the spell model for Peach Arc Thorn Arrow; Mind-Driven Divine Shot. It's a private spell model I created, with no strict inheritance relationship with Golden Crown Mountain. You can study it."
A magical radiance flew from her hand and entered Locke's glabella. Instantly, complex spell models automatically unfolded, transforming into Locke's knowledge, waiting for Locke to comprehend and assimilate them himself.
After a preliminary understanding, Locke discovered that this was actually the special usage of Peach Arc Thorn Arrow that he had seen when chasing Witch Esther.
More precisely, Mind-Driven Divine Shot is a complete set of advanced spell models for Peach Arc Thorn Arrow, an inheritance of his master's lineage, and has little to do with Golden Crown Mountain, so he could continue to learn it.
And holy dragon star is also an ancient inheritance of Golden Crown Mountain. Golden Crown Mountain doesn't mind a wizard taking this part of the inheritance out, as it's too ancient and too basic, and unlike those Great Magic inheritances, it doesn't limit the number of inheritors to only one wizard per generation.
The Mind-Driven Divine Shot spell series has a total of five spell models, three of which can be learned by Star Ring Wizards, one by Moon Ring, and one by Sun Ring.
The three that can be learned at the Star Ring stage include Spirit Breath Divine Arrow, which directly attacks the opponent by locking onto their spirit breath, giving this magic a guaranteed hit characteristic.
The prerequisite is to first obtain a portion of the opponent's spirit breath to achieve this effect.
At the same time, the Spirit Breath Divine Arrow can travel through spirit breath, meaning it can hide within the hidden vitality of all things. This explains why the arrow previously seen by him would suddenly disappear, then suddenly reappear, and continuously lock onto Witch Esther.
As for one of the later ones, it is Peach Bow Guard, a defensive spell model utilizing the peach bow.
There is also Peach Arc Thorn Arrow; Azure Dragon Star, which uses azure spiritual breath to enhance the attack power of Peach Arc Thorn Arrow, shooting out an Azure Dragon in an instant, using azure spiritual breath to instantly strengthen all attributes of the Magic Plant, causing this arrow to unleash extraordinary power.
It can be said that this entire inheritance of Peach Arc Thorn Arrow; Mind-Driven Divine Shot, if brought outside, would be an inheritance that countless wizards would fight over, and his teacher directly gave such an inheritance to him.
However, Locke quickly noticed that this inheritance only had Star Ring level content, without Moon Ring and Sun Ring. That is, the two inherited spells he saw could only show their names, but not their descriptions or specific magic books.
Witch Ekaterina placed one intricate and valuable magic ring after another on him.
"Your previous performances have been excellent, and your outstanding performance in the special funding earned me some influence, so this is a form of reward."
"These three spell models originally needed to be purchased from me, but I believe you need to learn them now, so I have given them to you. It's also part of your reward, or rather, a reward for what you did along the Tianjiang Coast."
Witch Ekaterina said, "Locke, if you can prevent Olaye from successfully opening a shop along the Tianjiang Coast, I will give you further rewards. In my academic lineage, I always mete out clear rewards and punishments."
"I remember all your contributions, and I am... very satisfied with you."
"Locke, I still remember you from back then. You knew nothing at the time, but what pleases me is that your gaze is even more resolute now than it was then."
Locke recalled himself from the year he participated in the Yunze Cup and immediately smiled.
Back then, he was indeed a newborn calf unafraid of tigers.
He went directly from the Land of Six Towers to participate in the Yunze Cup held in the Yunze Wetlands. Now that he thought about it, many wizards must have found it very strange back then. Witch Ekaterina said, "But you need to keep working hard, because if you don't advance, you retreat. The Star Ring stage is just such a stage; if you don't move forward... you will fall back."
"You must feel it now, right?"
Locke's eyes were strange, and he immediately nodded and said, "Teacher, the Magic Pressure at the Star Ring level is too concentrated, and for some reason, the Magic Pressure I previously gained through meditation slowly dissipates outwards. I need to continuously meditate to maintain balance. This makes the Magic Pressure, which was already difficult to improve through meditation, even harder to maintain in this state."
"I was going to look for information to find a solution."
Witch Ekaterina said, "The tourmaline king peach of Golden Crown Mountain can temporarily solve the problem, as can some special magic resources, and the legendary alchemical sacred artifact [Five Phoenix Crystal], a very rare magic artifact that will leave its name in history, can solve this problem." "This is normal. You won't drop out of the Star Ring at least; even if you release Magic Pressure, you'll at most drop back to 20,000 Magic Pressure. This is caused by the special characteristics of the Star Ring stage. At this stage, due to the Virtual Forging characteristic of Great Magic, you are in a constant state of 'leaking,' requiring many external objects to maintain your Magic Pressure. You cannot exist independently."
"You need a lot of external things. This characteristic will be even more apparent at the Moon Ring stage. This is not a flaw of Great Magic, but something all existences in the Endless Void will encounter at this stage. Because your Magic Pressure has increased too much, you generate your own stellar gravity, and overly concentrated stellar gravity radiates Magic Pressure outwards. In this radiation process, your Magic Pressure will continuously evaporate." Witch Ekaterina said, "This problem is not yet serious in the Wizard World."
"But if you leave the Wizard World for areas with thinner magic tide gradients, this problem will become even more apparent. However, our wizards' Great Magic is already powerful enough to prevent a certain amount of Magic Pressure radiation and evaporation; the problems of other Star Ring life forms are even more severe. Of course, there are some special astronomical phenomena in the Endless Void that can solve this problem..."
"Locke, I have something to attend to now."
Witch Ekaterina picked up the lingzhi magic plant, seemingly communicating with someone.
"Locke, there should be a hidden group along the Tianjiang Coast. I want specific information about that group. I'm entrusting it to you." Witch Ekaterina ended the video call.
Locke, meanwhile, fell into thought.
Because clearly, there was a mysterious group along the Tianjiang Coast that even his teacher wanted to know about.
But that was just an ordinary wizard territory.
Could it be that the waters there were deeper than he thought?
Locke stood up and walked around the free library. Mountain Traveler seemed to have returned to his dormitory on the airship, but Locke encountered a familiar person halfway—a Crystallized Wizard in her soul decline period. She had done some styling and makeup, but Locke still recognized her.
AI Model: gemini-3.1-flash-lite
Locke locked eyes with Witch Zoe, who was walking into the library. This time, Witch Zoe, wearing her long curly hair, froze for a moment because there was a young Crystallized Wizard beside her.
The two were chatting and laughing together.
That Crystallized Wizard was a young man, wearing the badge of a Wizard Academy from Dragonfall Land. He couldn't have been more than 28 years old; he was clearly a young genius from Dragonfall Land, followed by two Crystallized Wizard guards behind them.
Witch Zoe, the Pirate Witch, looked at Locke in surprise. She clearly hadn't expected to see him here, on a Wizard Ship traveling from Dragonfall Land to the Yunze Wetlands, especially since most of the wizards on this ship were supposed to be from Dragonfall Land.
Witch Zoe's expression immediately turned extremely ugly.
Locke noticed several gazes fixed on him. In the past, these encounters had dragged him into bitter battles, but now, seeing Witch Zoe's swindling techniques again, he felt like he was watching a comedy.
Clearly, Witch Zoe's previous companions were all dead or had left; he didn't know which, but these were all new faces. Moreover, Witch Zoe's Magic Pressure had increased significantly compared to before.
She quickly lowered her head to avoid looking at Locke. Witch Zoe's gaze fell on the young wizard beside her. She intended to steal a treasure from this wizard, who was surrounded by heavy guards—a special magic gem called a Power Gem.
Her gaze landed on the young man's neck, where a magic pendant hung.
As a Crystallized stage barrier master and an expert from the School of Protection, Witch Zoe was confident she could take the pendant from this young man. She only needed prolonged contact with this young wizard.
She just hadn't expected to run into an old acquaintance who knew her background all too well here.
Locke's Innate Magic Eye flashed across his forehead, allowing him to observe the special fortune surrounding Witch Zoe once again. With his Star Ring level Innate Magic Eye, Locke could clearly see a cluster of special fortune on her. The black fortune seemed to be waving, attracting wizards with powerful fortune around her to attack her or become her enemies. This fortune even had a special area resembling a hand, which seemed capable of plundering others' luck.
"Is this a special School of Protection magic left on her by Takamagahara? I recall Witch Zoe having a High-Ring Wizard father backing her up."
"Is this her father's personal act, or is it the doing of Takamagahara? What kind of fish are they trying to catch using Witch Zoe?" Locke noticed that the special black fortune was no longer trying to hook him.
The reason was likely that his current Magic Pressure was simply too high. If she tried to hook him, Witch Zoe would definitely not survive the encounter.
"That must be some kind of special spiritual touch."
After realizing that the spell on Witch Zoe was ineffective against him, Locke walked toward her with peace of mind.
Witch Zoe immediately dared not look up. She had intended to bite the bullet and pretend not to know Locke, hoping he would let her go and also pretend not to know her, but who could have known that Locke would walk straight toward her?
The young wizard beside her was startled, as Locke was a Star Ring Wizard. Even in Dragonfall Land, their statuses and ecological niches were completely different.
The young wizard saluted Locke: "Greetings, mysterious Star Ring Great Wizard. I am Tiberon from the Arcane Tower Sanctuary in Dragonfall Land."
"May I ask who you are..."
Locke looked at Witch Zoe and said: "Zoe, long time no see. You've made a new friend, I see."
Wizard Tiberon looked at Witch Zoe in surprise.
"My dear, do you know this Great Wizard? Are you friends?"
He looked astonished, as if he had just seen his companion acquainted with a big shot she shouldn't have been able to interact with. Wasn't Witch Zoe a commoner wizard?
At that moment, his expression darkened slightly. If Witch Zoe had someone backing her, his attempts to swindle her for money and affection could easily invite retaliation. Tiberon was a playboy from the Arcane Tower Sanctuary, but he wasn't that stupid. He just wanted to get his hands on this witch, but he wasn't a man who would abandon reason for lust, nor was he someone controlled by his lower instincts.
If this woman had a background...
While Tiberon felt guilty, Witch Zoe placed her palm on the pendant around his neck.
The two wizard guards had their attention completely drawn away by Locke's presence; they could all feel that vast Star Ring level Magic Pressure. Witch Zoe glanced at Locke, instantly filled with confidence again. She curled her lips into a smile and said to Tiberon: "Of course, my dear. Wizard Locke is my friend. We've known each other since we were First-Ring Wizards. I even once gave Wizard Locke a Wizard Treasure Map, one I had treasured for over twenty years. Tell me, how is my relationship with him, my dear?"
Wizard Tiberon's lips turned pale.
He had misunderstood.
A black square ring worn on the thumb of the hand Witch Zoe had pressed against his chest flashed with magical brilliance. Then, as if performing magic, she used the same palm to place a replica hidden in her sleeve into the clasp of the pendant. She didn't use magic throughout the process; she simply added a School of Protection spell model to her palm that would deactivate upon contact.
This ensured that when her palm made contact with the skin of Tiberon, the young playboy from the Arcane Tower Sanctuary, he felt absolutely nothing. The wizards of Dragonfall Land were indeed skilled Alchemists, but unfortunately, apart from Object Controllers, the combat power of the others was mediocre. Tiberon was a typical Alchemist, and he didn't notice the anomaly on his chest at all.
Wizard Tiberon said to Witch Zoe: "My dear, I just remembered I have some business to attend to. My family's discipline is strict, and my Second-Ring Wizard parents keep a close watch on me. I must be going."
Witch Zoe looked at him, puzzled. "You... you..."
Wizard Tiberon scrambled away.
Watching him flee in a panic with his two bodyguards, Witch Zoe couldn't help but want to laugh.
"That guy... did he think I didn't see through his little schemes? These days, the only one who can satisfy him is a swindler like me." Locke stood beside her, hands behind his back, and asked Witch Zoe: "What did you take from him?"
The reason he wanted to ask was that through his Magic Eye, he had seen the special fortune monster on Witch Zoe, which had attracted that second-generation wizard named Tiberon. Furthermore, Tiberon hadn't realized that as long as he stayed with Witch Zoe, his luck would be nibbled away from time to time by the special fortune monster on her.
It was likely some kind of trigger-based reaction; whenever Witch Zoe did something with him, his luck would decrease out of thin air. And when Witch Zoe took the magic gem he wore on his chest, that guy's luck plummeted significantly.
Witch Zoe looked at him vigilantly.
"Great Wizard Locke, for a wizard of your stature, you're still asking me for these scraps? My god, are you now... a... a Star Ring?" Locke nodded.
Witch Zoe's lips trembled slightly.
Because she remembered seeing Locke once last year, or perhaps the year before. At that time, she had been shocked that Locke had become a Second-Ring Wizard, but who could have expected that upon meeting again, Locke would already be a Star Ring Wizard?
Witch Zoe swallowed hard.
Locke took the gem from her hand.
"Well, the path from Second-Ring to Star Ring is relatively easy, but from Star Ring to Moon Ring, it requires persistent, patient effort."
Witch Zoe said: "I don't understand."
She helplessly realized that her loot had now transferred into Locke's hands, becoming his loot. With Locke looking very interested, and with the demeanor of 'if you don't do it gracefully, I'll have to help you do it gracefully,' Witch Zoe realized she probably wouldn't be able to get this Power Gem back.
Witch Zoe said: "This is a Power Gem."
She rolled her eyes at Locke. Although Locke was now a Star Ring Wizard with a noble status, this was the second time he had taken her loot from her. This directly caused Witch Zoe, the Pirate Queen, to lose control of her emotions and feel extremely dissatisfied.
Witch Zoe said: "A Power Gem is an extremely precious magic gem."
"Every Power Gem is a mother lode; as long as it is placed into a specific vein, it can produce such gems. That Tiberon is an idiot. He thought that magic necklace was important, not realizing this decorative gem is far more expensive than that magic item. I don't know what the designer's purpose was, placing such a rare thing on a necklace. This is a Fire Elemental Power Gem."
"Power Gems are elemental crystals; they are elemental miracles."
"Anyone who holds a Power Gem, as long as they know the specific activation method, can obtain infinite power. For example, this Fire Elemental Power Gem can allow even a mortal to possess the power to manipulate fire elements. As long as this gem is placed into a vein, according to my estimates, setting up a few corresponding magic arrays would allow for the production of many specific types of fire elemental ores. For example, Fire Demon Gem ores possessing the explosive power of a first-ring spell. With it, one could produce them endlessly. If this were sold, I believe it would be worth at least five million Magic Stones."
Locke looked at Witch Zoe in surprise.
"It's that powerful? And he was able to parade it around in public?"
Witch Zoe said: "Few wizards know about Power Gems."
"Moreover, a special barrier was placed on it. If I weren't a barrier master, I wouldn't have noticed it either. The Alchemist who created that magic item is highly skilled. Perhaps that necklace was snatched by Tiberon, or obtained through trade, but regardless, he never discovered what made that necklace truly valuable." "I think it's very difficult for something like this to fall into the hands of a First-Ring Wizard. I suspect the original owner must have been in a rush to hide it, which is why they had to conceal it in a necklace."
Witch Zoe looked on with longing.
"You..."
Locke looked at the gem and said: "It's thanks to me that you were able to get this gem. However, I'll buy it from you for three million Magic Stones." After checking the price and confirming the authenticity of this Power Gem, Locke spoke.
Because the price of a Power Gem in the Yunze Wetlands was actually in the tens of millions.
Clearly, this thing was a very important resource for magic industry.
It was just that very few people knew about it; it belonged to a very obscure field, known only to those in niche circles. It wasn't easy for Witch Zoe to know about this.
Moreover, this thing might be helpful for his Aladdin and the Silver-clad Peach Garden.
"However, the condition is that you must claim that you have already sold this item, and that it was sold through an intermediary, so you don't know who bought it. We need to sign a contract with magical binding power to ensure you can abide by the agreement."