Chapter 140: Expansion and New Members

Chapter 140: Expansion and New Members

The task Su Nan assigned to Xie Man and Cole was, of course, to establish new magical plant gardens.

After advancing to the rank of Second-Class Wizard Apprentice, the two had already mastered the basic skills of manipulating energy particles and were ready to learn how to set up magical arrays.

Once they had these skills, they could start creating magical plant gardens.

With two new helpers, Su Nan no longer needed to run around everywhere. He could focus his energy on cultivation and research.

In the year 1257 of the Starlight Calendar, during the month of Winter Harp (January).

In the spell training room.

Su Nan casually waved his hand, and nine magical missiles simultaneously shot out, shattering a humanoid target a hundred meters away.

In the next instant, a crimson beam shot out like an arrow from a bow, hitting another target and melting it into molten iron.

Seeing the fragments and molten iron on the ground, Su Nan's face broke into a satisfied smile.

[Instant Spellcasting]!

After one year and ten months, he had finally mastered this advanced spell technique!

The significant boost to his combat capabilities from omitting the incantation was evident.

While other wizard apprentices were still casting their spells, he could already release two or three.

From today on, he would be a true human artillery platform.

After a moment, Su Nan returned from his elation, his eyes reflecting a thoughtful expression.

"What technique should I train next?"

Besides Instant Spellcasting and Silent Spellcasting, the advanced spell techniques also included:

- Spell Range Increase to extend the casting distance.

- Spell Duration Extension to prolong the effect duration.

- Spell Area Expansion to increase the affected area.

- Compound Spellcasting to cast multiple spells simultaneously.

- Spell Construction to enhance control over spells, maximizing their effectiveness.

Su Nan had five advanced spell techniques to choose from.

After much consideration, he decided on Compound Spellcasting.

For him, spells were more often used for support in battles, like the Levitation, Mirror Image, and Feather Fall spells.

For offensive and defensive purposes, he primarily relied on magical items, high-grade rune gems, and magical core artifacts.

Compared to these, the power of second-level spells was somewhat lacking.

Therefore, instead of choosing the other four techniques that would enhance spell effects, he opted for Compound Spellcasting. This would allow him more spell combinations in battle, increasing his tactical flexibility.

With his decision made, Su Nan immediately put it into action.

[Complete one Compound Spellcasting practice, ‘Compound Spellcasting’ training progress +0.01%]



Compound Spellcasting and Instant Spellcasting were among the most challenging advanced spell techniques.

Su Nan estimated it would take at least one to two years to master this technique.

"At this rate, I might be able to master all advanced spell techniques before advancing to a full wizard."

If that happened, Su Nan believed he would be the first wizard apprentice in the history of the Starlight Continent to master all seven advanced spell techniques.

With all seven techniques at his disposal, no wizard apprentice would be a match for him in a pure spell duel.

After a brief moment of fantasizing about the future, Su Nan calmed his excited heart and left the spell training area.

He had just returned to his study when there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Carolina and Red Widow entered.

"Master!"

The two women bowed respectfully.

Su Nan glanced at them.

Since Red Widow joined his ranks, Carolina and she seemed to have developed a competitive dynamic, often vying for attention and efficiency.

Su Nan noticed this but saw that their competition did not hinder development; rather, it indirectly improved efficiency. So, he turned a blind eye to it.

Under their management, the city-states of Dark Lake, Mato, and Osen were now on a stable path of development.

The garrison for Osen had also been resolved.

Following this, Su Nan adjusted the base's task system, reducing the rewards for crafting golems and increasing the rewards for creating magical adamantium. This shift in incentives increased the frequency of apprentices taking on the latter tasks.

He estimated it wouldn't be long before he had enough materials to craft a magical adamantium golem.

"Master, here is this month's financial report," Carolina said, respectfully handing over a stack of papers.

Su Nan took them and quickly scanned through, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Why is it down by twenty percent compared to last month?"

Carolina quickly replied, "Master, four of our mines are nearly depleted, and their output has drastically decreased. We expect them to cease production within two months. The remaining three mines have also seen a significant reduction in output. Only the six newly developed mines are maintaining their production levels."

Su Nan frowned slightly but said nothing.

The initial seven mines he had acquired provided such substantial profits largely due to the astonishing efficiency of the clay golems.

However, this also led to a rapid depletion of the mine's reserves.

The first batch of mines had already lasted much longer than expected.

"How is the mine exploration going?" Su Nan turned to Red Widow.

After Dark Lake, Mato, and Osen stabilized, he had tasked Red Widow with organizing a team to explore the surrounding areas to find new mines.

"Master, within a hundred miles, we have discovered two new mines. Preliminary surveys show that one is a small iron mine, and the other is a small copper mine," Red Widow said, bowing slightly. Her gesture revealed a glimpse of her cleavage, which gleamed under the magical light.

Carolina, standing nearby, rolled her eyes with a hint of disdain.

Stupid vixen, she has no idea what Master likes. If Master were into that, you wouldn't even stand a chance.

As expected, Su Nan paid no attention to Red Widow's subtle movements and instead fell into deep thought.

"Two small metal mines, better than nothing, I suppose."

"Unfortunately, neither is a silver mine," Su Nan sighed.

One of the four nearly depleted mines was a silver mine. This meant that the rate of accumulating mithril would significantly decrease until a new silver mine was found.

"Will we have enough mithril to craft the secret golems once the other silver mine is exhausted?"

"Better to find a new mine sooner rather than later."

With his decision made, Su Nan looked up at the two women.

"Send more people and expand the search area. We need to find more mines."

Carolina and Red Widow felt a jolt of concern.

The underground world was far more dangerous than the surface, with threats lurking in every shadow. No one knew what kind of dangers might be hiding in the darkness, or what powerful creatures or tribes might be lurking in some cave.

The cities of Dark Lake, Mato, and Osen had tried to expand their territories before, but the losses were too heavy, forcing them to abandon the idea.

Expanding the search area would likely bring the same risks.

Despite this, neither Carolina nor Red Widow hesitated, responding with determination.

"Master, rest assured, I will handle this with the utmost care," Carolina said firmly.

Red Widow, not wanting to be outdone, quickly added, "I will not disappoint you, Master!"

Later that night, moonlight streamed through the window, casting a thin, white veil over the small room.

Su Nan opened his eyes and scanned the long table, noting that only six people were present tonight.

Apart from him, the usual attendees were Night Owl, Heart, Rose, Wand, and Skeleton. Black Forest was not at this gathering, and Traveler, as always, was nowhere to be seen.

Su Nan felt a slight pang of disappointment at Traveler's absence.

Frankly, he was quite eager to meet Traveler, hoping to trade for some valuable information about the underground world.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the gathering moved into the trading phase.

Due to the scarcity of resources, not everyone could bring high-value items to trade. Most of the time, they exchanged ordinary materials.

Su Nan was an exception.

In recent gatherings, he no longer just offered mana stones in exchange for others' items. He had also started bringing first-tier potions and alchemical-grade magical items to trade.

Continuously using only mana stones for trades could give the impression of monopolizing the market, which might cause resentment among the others.

But for Su Nan, a few first-tier potions and alchemical-grade magical items were no big deal. He had a large stockpile in the warehouse of Base 1.

Over a few gatherings, the items Su Nan brought had become the most sought-after items at the meetings.

This time, his focus was on various wizard tomes, rare materials, and soul crystals.

However, his collection of wizard tomes had already surpassed 1,300, and the members of the Forest Hut could hardly find any tomes that weren't already in his collection. The returns in this area had significantly diminished.

By the end of the trading session, Su Nan had acquired only a few rare materials, but the ten micro soul crystals he received from Skeleton were the most valuable.

Su Nan had once tried to negotiate with Skeleton to purchase the technology for creating soul crystals.

However, Skeleton had immediately and firmly refused.

He knew the difference between a one-time feast and a steady supply.

Skeleton's greatest advantage in the Forest Hut's trading circle was his supply of soul crystals. If he were to trade the technology to Su Nan, given Su Nan's demonstrated resources and strength, the next gathering might see Su Nan bringing a large number of soul crystals to the table.

At that point, he would lose not only a valuable trading partner in Su Nan but also his advantage in the trading circle.

Any smart person would know what to do.

Su Nan had anticipated this and wasn't disappointed by the refusal.

In his place, he wouldn't have given away such important technology either.

After the trading session, Night Owl raised his hand to signal everyone to wait a moment.

"There's something I need to discuss with everyone."

"I've found a Third-Class Wizard Apprentice. After an initial investigation, he seems to fit our Forest Hut's criteria. I'm considering inviting him to join us and would like to hear your opinions."

Everyone was slightly taken aback.

Wand smiled and said, "That's quite unusual. In the past, it often took seven to ten years, or even longer, to find a new member. Why has it become so frequent recently?"

He glanced at Su Nan.

After all, Su Nan had only joined the Forest Hut about four years ago, and to find another potential member so quickly was indeed surprising.

Third-Class Wizard Apprentices weren't as common as cabbages on the street.

These individuals often hid behind powerful factions and were not easily accessible.

Night Owl shrugged and said, "I was just lucky. While investigating someone else, I stumbled upon his existence."

Heart asked, "What's his background like?"

Night Owl slowly explained, "As per the usual rules, I can't reveal his specific details, but I can give you a general idea."

"In terms of strength, he recently escaped from Sauro's grasp. That should be enough to prove his capabilities."

This statement caused a ripple of surprise among the attendees.

"He managed to escape from Sauro? It seems our new member is quite formidable," Wand mused.

The others nodded in agreement.

Su Nan raised an eyebrow in surprise and used the communication spell to ask Rose, "Who is Sauro? From the others' reactions, he seems very powerful."

Rose glanced at Su Nan and replied via the communication spell, "Sauro is the founder of the Immortality Society. I've never met him, but I've heard he's extremely powerful, having once single-handedly killed a fourth-level legendary beast."

Fourth-level legendary beast!

Su Nan's eyes narrowed.

That level of strength was indeed formidable, ranking among the top tier of Third-Class Wizard Apprentices.

He hadn't expected the Immortality Society to have such a powerful figure.

Given their aggressive actions, it was clear that the Immortality Society had some serious capabilities to have operated freely on the Starlight Continent for so long.

"He must at least have the strength of a third-level legendary wizard to have escaped from that Sauro," Heart murmured.

"His strength is not an issue," Rose nodded.

The Forest Hut only invited Third-Class Wizard Apprentices, but not just any Third-Class Wizard Apprentice could join. They had strict requirements for strength.

Initially, if Su Nan hadn't killed Hebe and demonstrated his formidable power, Night Owl wouldn't have invited him to the Forest Hut.

Seeing no objections, Night Owl continued, "In terms of resources, he comes from a royal family, so he has plenty of valuable items to trade."

"As for his conduct, I don't need to elaborate. You should understand."

Generally, wizard apprentices from royal or noble families tended to follow the rules and wouldn't recklessly cause disasters or large-scale casualties.

After all, they had their own considerations.

Such individuals were more in line with the Forest Hut's values.

"Now, let's vote," Night Owl looked around the room. "According to our rules, a proposal passes if it receives more than two-thirds of the votes."

Wand immediately responded, "I have no objections."

"Agreed," Heart said.

Rose and Skeleton also indicated their approval.

Su Nan naturally had no objections.

An additional trading partner was a good thing.

"Alright, six votes in favor. The proposal passes."

Night Owl made the final decision.

Although Black Forest and Traveler were not present, six votes already exceeded two-thirds of the total, so there was no need to consult them.

"I will contact him and extend the invitation. You can all look forward to good news."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end