Chapter 57: Expansion of the Spell Library

Thinking thus, Gao De took out a charcoal pencil and sat down at the table.

He opened the spell formula for [Flame Arrow], picked up the charcoal pencil, and began calculating on the blank margins of the page, precisely as if solving a math problem.

Same old steps: establish a Cartesian coordinate system, decompose the spell star coordinates of the Flame Arrow model, and construct an ordered triplet array.

The Flame Arrow spell model consists of ten spell stars.

This should already be the limit of a cantrip—one more star than the [Acid Splash] model.

But for Gao De, about to graduate from the Mathematics Department of Jing University, decomposing the coordinates of nine or ten stars was a simple, almost trivial “elementary school math problem.”

Soon, the ten node coordinates appeared on the blank margins of the formula.

Gao De spent a few more minutes recording the ten coordinates, then set aside the spell formula, sat cross-legged, relaxed his body, and closed his eyes, clearing his mind of all distractions.

Quickly entering a meditative state, his spirit sank into the magnificent sea of spell stars, began to summon the spell stars, and attempted to construct the Flame Arrow model.

Whoosh! Gao De forcefully exhaled a breath of stale air.

He sprang to his feet, opened his half-closed eyes, and a faint gleam of delight shone in them.

Time had passed swiftly without notice.

In the blink of an eye, nine days had passed since he opened the box and received Seda Mage’s inheritance.

During these nine days, Gao De became extraordinarily busy.

But his gains were equally immense.

“Wind Spirit Moon Shadow.”

Gao De silently recited it in his mind.

Instantly, a crude information interface appeared in his consciousness.

Source:

0th-level — [Human] (2/7), [Gray-Eyed Rat] (used), [Dark Marsh Crawler] (used), Wolf Rat (1/7)

Spells:

0th-level — [Mage Hand], [Repair+], [Acid Splash+], [Freezing Ray], [Enhanced Resistance], [Flame Arrow], [Tracking Mark], [Flash], [Fatigue Touch], [Detect Magic].

Looking at the neatly arranged ten spells in the spell column, an indescribable sense of satisfaction filled Gao De’s heart.

All five spells left behind by Seda Mage had now been mastered by Gao De!

Although Gao De was still a First-Rank Apprentice, in terms of spell library breadth, even a Second-Rank Apprentice could not match him.

In fact, among Third-Rank Apprentices, only the seasoned ones might surpass him in spell library breadth.

“Breadth is sufficient for now—if only depth could be improved too,” Gao De murmured to himself.

He stared at the flashing yellow “+” signs after eight of the spells in the spell column, finding them irritating, wishing he could instantly click them all.

But sadly, he had no source.

As things stood, the best way to acquire source was still through geopulse creatures.

But geopulse creatures lived only in the wilds beyond the city.

For Gao De at his current stage, hunting geopulse creatures in the wild was too intense, too risky.

First-Rank Mage Apprentices had indeed gained some supernatural power, but they remained far too fragile.

And the wilds held too many uncontrollable variables.

Whether encountering a powerful geopulse creature or a morally ambiguous human, either could leave Gao De buried in the wilderness.

Unless absolutely necessary, it was best not to take chances.

So the instant he entertained the thought of venturing out to hunt geopulse creatures for source, he crushed it immediately.

Commercial District.

After so many more days, foot traffic on the streets had not returned to its former level—it had grown even heavier. The anomaly beyond Hogen City continued.

More and more outsiders had heard the news and rushed to Hogen City to “seek treasure.”

Seeing this, Gao De’s unease deepened further.

Yet no matter how uneasy he felt, it seemed he could do nothing but hoard food.

Thinking thus, Gao De first went to Phil’s Alchemy Shop and sold the Basic Spider Venom Potion he had crafted during this period.

When handing Gao De the receipt, the shop clerk casually asked, “Why have all the alchemical potions you’ve brought lately been Basic Spider Venom Potions?”

Gao De’s heart stirred, but his expression remained calm as he explained, “The mage has been away on business lately and isn’t at the herb garden, so we’ve only been able to supply Basic Spider Venom Potions during this time.”

The clerk had only asked out of idle curiosity and didn’t take it seriously. “No problem—Basic Spider Venom Potions have been selling extremely well lately.”

“In a few days, I’ll need to spend some time trying to craft Basic Stamina Potion,” Gao De mused to himself as he left Phil’s Alchemy Shop.

Currently, he still had to rely on Seda Mage’s name to trade with Phil’s Alchemy Shop.

He absolutely could not reveal the news of Seda Mage’s death in the short term.

Although the apprentices in the herb garden had all agreed to conceal this news together,

if someone grew suspicious and decided to investigate, there might still be cracks.

At the very least, he couldn’t be sure the apprentices could truly keep their mouths shut.

As Gao De pondered how to continue deceiving everyone by waving Seda Mage’s banner, he walked without pause to Pierre’s shop.

He stepped inside and was surprised to find that Pierre’s small general store, which had always been nearly empty when he visited, now had three or four customers.

Gao De waited patiently nearby until all the customers had left.

“Business is good today,” Gao De remarked, surprised—these three or four customers hadn’t just been browsing; each had bought something.

“Not just today—these past few days have been fine,” Pierre said without false modesty.

“More outsiders mean more customers. Every merchant in the city now wishes the anomaly beyond the walls would last forever,” he sighed.

“You merchants have certainly made a small fortune these days,” Gao De nodded thoughtfully.

“I’d rather not have made this fortune,” Pierre replied with a tone of resignation.

Gao De knew Pierre wasn’t showing off—he was the one who had warned him to hoard food for emergencies.

“So what big business are you bringing me today?” Pierre shook his head and asked casually.

Gao De glanced around, confirmed no one was nearby, then leaned close to the counter and whispered, “Boss, can you still reach that Mr. Yom who sold me the spell formulas before?”

“Hmm?” Pierre’s already small eyes narrowed to slits.

Yet from within those slits, a sharp gleam shone.

“Ten silver coins as intermediary fee,” Gao De said boldly, rubbing his fingers together to indicate the payoff was substantial.

“Didn’t you say you weren’t interested in the remaining two spell formulas back then?” Pierre glanced at Gao De.

“Back then was back then, now is now,” Gao De grinned. “And back then, I was short on cash too.”

“Greed leads to indigestion. Mastering all three spell formulas will take you a lot of time,” Pierre frowned slightly, hinting at deeper meaning.

“I know. It’s just better to be prepared,” Gao De didn’t argue, offering a plausible excuse.

“I can still reach him, but whether he’s still willing to sell spell formulas, I can’t be sure,” Pierre said cautiously, seeing Gao De’s persistence.

“Whether or not he’s willing to sell spell formulas, if you just help me contact him, I’ll pay you ten silver coins.”

Gao De, now barely financially flush, gritted his teeth: “Also, if he’s unwilling to sell anymore, you may tell him I’m willing to pay extra.”

“Deal!” Pierre chuckled, giving Gao De a look laden with meaning. “Looks like you’ve had quite a haul.”

(End of Chapter)