Chapter 9: The Blackstone Mines

Chapter 9: The Blackstone Mines

Ten days later.

In the meditation chamber, Su Nan sat cross-legged on the ground.

In the invisible space that others could not see, countless particles of energy swarmed towards him, as if drawn by an unseen force, and plunged into his body.

Deep within his mind, the star ring had mostly materialized, with only a tiny portion remaining ethereal.

As more energy particles filled in, this last bit of ethereal quality visibly vanished.

The moment the final fragment materialized, the entire star ring suddenly glowed brightly and began to vibrate gently.

Su Nan felt a clear chime ring in his mind, and his spirit instantly became clear and refreshed.

"I did it!"

Su Nan opened his eyes, a genuine smile spreading across his face.

It had taken him nearly half a year of practice, but he had finally formed his first star ring.

Regaining his composure from the joy, Su Nan immediately checked his status panel.

[Spirit: 3.60 / Constitution: 3.25]



"My spirit increased by 0.78, and my constitution by 0.31!"

Su Nan nodded in satisfaction.

Even with the help of the Lesser Vigor Elixir, it would normally take him about a month of meditation to gain this much spirit.

The improvement from forming the star ring was indeed significant.

In terms of constitution, Su Nan now surpassed the level of an apprentice knight.

However, he was still far from the 8 points required for a full knight.

After all, he had not practiced any breathing techniques.

"If I start practicing breathing techniques now, I shouldn't have much trouble progressing."

Breathing techniques and constitution were mutually reinforcing.

The faster one progressed in breathing techniques, the faster their constitution would improve, and vice versa.

With his current constitution, he might be able to master a basic breathing technique in less than a month.

However, he had no intention of doing so.

Wizards had many ways to strengthen their constitution and didn't need to waste time on breathing techniques.

It would be better to focus on advancing his spell and skill proficiency.

With a thought, Su Nan opened his spell list.

[Mage Hand]



[Sleep Spell]



[Acid Splash]



[Flare]



Thanks to the effects of the Lesser Vigor Elixir, his spell learning efficiency had increased several times over.

In just two months, he had not only mastered the Sleep Spell but also the Acid Splash and Flare spells.

He was currently working on advancing his proficiency in the Unlock Spell.

"Wizardry involves many profound fields of knowledge, requiring a significant amount of time to master."

"This is why many talented wizard apprentices often spend over a century to advance to the rank of wizard."

"However, with sufficient resources, this time can be greatly shortened."

Su Nan mused.

The Starlight Continent had been abandoned due to the depletion of elements and resources, leaving wizards with no hope of enhancing their power.

Without his Synthesis Cube, it would be a pipe dream to advance to the rank of wizard on the current Starlight Continent.

"Upgrading the 2nd Tier Star Ring Meditation Technique requires 3,000 proficiency points, which should take about four months."

"With a constant supply of Lesser Vigor Elixirs, I could advance to a 2nd Rank Wizard Apprentice in at most two years."

Su Nan estimated that the cost to make a bottle of Lesser Vigor Elixir was about twelve gold coins, which could be reduced to around ten gold coins with more practice.

That would be twenty gold coins per month.

"It seems the monthly tax revenue of Blackstone City is only about forty to fifty gold coins, so this is quite a significant expense."

Su Nan had considered synthesizing the Lesser Vigor Elixir to enhance its effects, but with Blackstone City's current income, he couldn't afford to purchase enough materials to make a large quantity of the elixir.

"I should discuss this with my brother."

Su Nan got up and left the meditation chamber.

On his way, he ran into Old Galer, who informed him that Koy was in the study. Su Nan changed direction and headed straight for the study.

However, when Su Nan found Koy in the study, he discovered that Koy was also sighing deeply, with a worried expression on his face.

Koy looked up and saw Su Nan, quickly hiding his worries and forcing a smile. "It's you, Su Nan. You've been locked up in the courtyard for days. What brings you out today?"

"Brother, I need to discuss something with you."

Su Nan got straight to the point, mentioning the need to purchase materials.

Koy's face twisted into a bitter smile. "There are a little over fifty gold coins left in the treasury. I was planning to use them to buy armor, but if you need them, I'll give them to you."

Su Nan glanced at Koy, recalling his worried expression, and instantly understood the situation. "Is the fiefdom short on funds right now?"

Koy didn't hide anything, sighing deeply. "Recently, the number of knights in the fiefdom has increased, significantly raising food expenses. Next month, we'll start planting, which will require money for tools and seeds. The expenses are indeed substantial."

"Is there any way to cut costs or increase income?"

"Cutting costs isn't an option. The fiefdom needs to grow, and saving money is impossible. Whether it's arming the army or developing the economy, we need gold coins."

Koy had always harbored the ambition to strengthen their power and reclaim the Shining Fiefdom. He was not the type to sit back and do nothing.

"As for increasing income, I have an idea. I plan to reopen the Blackstone Mines!"

The Blackstone Mines?

Su Nan's expression shifted slightly.

He remembered that Blackstone City was once famous for its blackstone iron.

Blackstone iron was a high-quality metal that, with simple refining, could match the hardness of fine steel, making it an excellent material for forging armor and weapons.

Blackstone City was named after this resource.

It was because of blackstone iron that Blackstone City became one of the most prosperous cities in the Golden Rock Province.

However, an incident caused the Blackstone Mines to be abandoned, leading to the city's decline.

"Speaking of which, why did the Blackstone Mines become abandoned?" Su Nan asked, puzzled.

Without a special reason, no previous lord of Blackstone City would abandon a gold mine that continuously produced gold coins.

"According to the old soldiers in the city, it was because of a monster that appeared in the mines."

"Monster?"

Koy was well-prepared, pulling out a piece of parchment and spreading it on the table.

It depicted a leopard with a completely black body, its form clearly showing stone patterns and a metallic sheen, making it look like a creature entirely composed of metal and stone.

"The previous lord called these monsters Iron Devourers. They feed on blackstone iron ore and have bodies as hard as blackstone iron. Each one has the combat strength of a junior knight, making them difficult to deal with."

"Are there many of these monsters?" Su Nan asked.

While knight-level monsters were fearsome, they wouldn't be enough to deter previous lords from taking action. If necessary, they could spend a few hundred gold coins to hire a senior knight to handle the problem.

Unless there were a large number of them or another reason.

Sure enough, Koy continued, "There aren't many, maybe two or three dozen. The key issue is that Iron Devourers are very cunning. When they sense danger, they can burrow into the rock walls and escape at incredible speeds, even a senior knight can't stop them."

"Without clearing these monsters, the mines can't operate normally."

A creature that could burrow through the ground, huh? Su Nan raised an eyebrow. This was indeed a tough problem to handle.

—Of course, that was just for ordinary people.

"If that's the case, there might still be a solution."

Koy was taken aback by Su Nan's words and it took him a moment to react, jumping up in excitement. "You have a way to deal with the Iron Devourers?"

Su Nan pondered for a moment. "We can give it a try."

Although Su Nan didn't give a hundred percent guarantee, it was enough to make Koy overjoyed.

After all, the lack of gold coins had been his biggest worry. If he could reopen the Blackstone Mines, all his problems would be solved!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end