Chapter 340: Phantom Flame
Chapter 340: Phantom Flame
Adjacent to Shadow Wizard Gloria's Wizard Tower, a stone structure soared into the sky. This was the Academy's temporary camp, bustling with activity as various trivial matters were being processed.
The camp's responsibilities included, but were not limited to, distributing credits, exchanging goods, and purchasing various magical creature corpses.
When Linen, dressed in a white robe, arrived, the hall was bustling with apprentice wizards coming and going.
In just half a month, everything had fallen into a well-oiled routine.
"Grover!" Linen waved at the figure lounging in a soft chair, "Still taking it easy?"
Grover lifted the cover over his head, revealing a face covered in pustules. With a smile, he said, "Is the potion ready?"
"Yes," Linen nodded, handing over the potion and simultaneously producing a tuft of blue velvet. "You're an expert in biology; help me identify what this is."
"Oh!" Grover straightened up, and a pustule on his face split open, from which a black snake emerged and bit the velvet.
Snake Wizard Grover! One of the most renowned wizards in the Academy.
His body was composed of hundreds of different venomous snakes, granting him a vast array of techniques. However, due to a particular reason, he could never advance beyond the Tier 2 level.
With the two Tier 2 wizards absent, he was the temporary camp's manager.
"Hmm..." Grover chewed his lip as if savoring something, then spoke slowly, "This is a magical creature called a Crow Wader. They have keen senses and are agile, often kept by demon hunters."
"But this one is special. Blue Crow Waders are rare, and this one has the potential to become a legendary creature."
"Demon hunters?" Linen furrowed his brow, "The Demon Hunter Corps?"
"Yes," Grover nodded. "If you want to find the owner of this creature, you'll likely need to inquire within the Demon Hunter Corps."
"I see," Linen pondered. "By the way, any news about what I asked for last time?"
"Yes, two of them are right here." Grover snapped his fingers, and a light screen appeared between them.
On the screen were several lines of text.
"Currently, the Academy has a collection of twenty-seven Tier 1 flames, but only six are available for sale."
"Take a look and choose the one you want."
In the world of wizards, there is a distinction between 'Gong' and 'Fa', which can be understood as 'Power' and 'Technique'.
The Great Flame Bloodline is considered 'Gong', as it primarily focuses on increasing one's cultivation, although it does involve some spell combat content.
To engage in spell combat, one must cultivate separate witchcraft.
Linen chose to continue cultivating the Flame Heart.
This witchcraft, created by his own body, can devour flames of the same level, allowing him to either harm enemies or increase his affinity with flames.
However, a technique remains just that—a technique.
Even if the Flame Heart reaches the fourth or fifth tier, it cannot directly enhance his cultivation.
Bat Flame!
The flame on the Lava Bat's body has strong adhesive and corrosive properties. Once it makes contact, it will burn until it is completely extinguished.
Phantom Flame!
A unique flame carried by special evil spirits, capable of scorching but unable to cause substantial harm.
Explosive Flame!
A special flame crafted by wizards, which explodes upon contact with objects, possessing immense destructive power.
...
Each of the six flames had its unique effect.
For a solitary wild wizard, acquiring a special flame would be a challenging endeavor.
However, for Linen, all he needed to do was sign a debt agreement with the Academy, and he could freely obtain one of these flames.
Moreover, fulfilling the agreement wasn't a difficult task.
"Below are the other flames," Grover pointed to the lower part of the light screen. "If you want any of these, the Academy can help you contact the wizards who possess them. However, whether they are willing to sell them is up to your abilities."
"No need." Linen shook his head.
"I want Phantom Flame."
"Phantom Flame?" Grover raised an eyebrow.
"This kind of flame is the weakest of the six types if not paired with the right wizardry."
"Hmm..."
"I forgot that you were almost harmed by a psychic secret art. With the Phantom Flame, you won't have to worry anymore."
Grover had found an excuse for Linen.
Grover himself possessed the Phantom Flame, and after signing a debt agreement, he acquired a chunk of flame sealed within an ice cube.
First Rank Flame - Phantom Flame!
As they walked back, snowflakes began to fall from the sky, and a chill started to permeate the air.
Linen paused and looked up at the sky.
It was snowing.
"Bang!"
A muffled sound came from the side, followed by various noises that made him frown involuntarily.
"The credits were earned through our hard work, brother and sister. Where are the things you promised?"
"What things?"
"You said that if we gave you our credits, you would help us get that Blue-Green Butterfly."
"Don't talk nonsense. I never agreed to that."
"You're lying! Give us back our credits!"
"What are you doing?"
"Bang!"
"Crackle..."
Several figures burst out of the dense forest, and among them, a man and a woman were being surrounded and beaten by a group of people, their shouts filling the air.
"What's going on?"
Linen frowned, and his mental power, as a full wizard, expanded outward.
The group attacking them paled, quickly scattering to the sides, revealing the man and woman lying on the ground.
In a short moment, both were covered in bruises and cuts, especially the man, who had taken more blows to protect the woman, his facial features now distorted.
"Sir."
One of them spoke up, "We were just fooling around."
"Fooling around?" Linen's expression darkened. "Do you take me for blind?"
"Boom!"
Without any apparent gesture, a fireball appeared in front of the speaker and exploded with a loud bang.
The blast wave and heat lifted him off the ground, and he fell unconscious a few meters away in the grass.
The others' faces turned even paler.
They were just freelance apprentices hired by the Academy, and even if they were killed, Linen wouldn't face any punishment.
Such was the harsh reality of the Wizard World.
"Sir!"
The man on the ground struggled to speak, "Langman cheated us, brother and sister. He promised a trade, took our credits, and didn't hold up his end of the bargain!"
"Nonsense!" A middle-aged man in wizard robes, clearly of higher status than the others, shouted, "Private credit transactions are prohibited by Academy rules. Don't try to frame me with this!"
"The credit card issued by the Academy has our sibling's imprint on it." The man spat out blood. "Show the credit card, and we'll know who's lying!"
"..." The wizard apprentice named Langman's face changed, and he took a deep breath. "Senior, I'm an official apprentice of the Academy. They are just hired hands recruited by the Academy."
"The credits are more useful in my hands, allowing for more and cheaper exchanges."
"And..."
"My father is a direct disciple of Wizard Charles."
"Oh!" Linen had originally intended to ignore the matter, as it was difficult to determine who was more reasonable in a dirty transaction between wizard apprentices.
But since it involved Charles...
"Huff!"
A ball of flame appeared out of thin air.
(End of Chapter)
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