Chapter 162: Crisis and a New Journey

For the current Jie Ming, this wizard spell is indeed quite suitable.

It does not directly improve combat effectiveness, but it can greatly improve his research efficiency, thereby indirectly accelerating his control over higher-level power.

Jie Ming speculated that the reason he awakened such a wizard spell was likely because he had been addicted to research for such a long time, having invested almost all his energy into the exploration and analysis of knowledge.

His Ring of Truth manifested his core needs and deepest understanding into this wizard spell named "Eye of Omnipotence." For a period of time, the birth of the "Eye of Omnipotence" was like opening a door to the depths of truth for Jie Ming.

With this auxiliary wizard spell, his already efficient research speed suddenly increased, as if he had boarded a high-speed train.

With the manuscripts on the divine power faith network provided by Mentor Clark, plus the insight of the "Eye of Omnipotence," the originally difficult research became no longer so obscure and difficult to understand.

For a time, Jie Ming was completely immersed in this state of deep research and unable to extricate himself.

Every day, except for short rests and necessary cultivation, he spent almost all his time in the laboratory, his spiritual power surging in the ocean of knowledge like a tide, absorbing endless wisdom.

He felt that his understanding related to the divine power faith network was improving at an astonishing speed.

However, after less than a year, this quiet and efficient research life was broken by a sudden crisis, forcing Jie Ming to break free from that near-meditative research state.

Because the Red Dust Qi he was proud of began to show a shortage in production!

Looking at the two vials of magic potion overflowing with seven-colored light in his hand, Jie Ming's face was somewhat ugly.

In fact, he had discovered long ago, and even anticipated, that the production of Red Dust Qi would decline, but he didn't expect the speed of the decline to be so astonishing.

In fact, from the moment he took over this batch of indigenous people, the production of Red Dust Qi had been in a state of decline.

However, as time passed, this downward trend became more and more obvious.

When he tallied this month's output, he was shocked to find that the collected amount of Red Dust Qi was already difficult to meet the minimum raw materials required for him to refine two vials of Red Dust Potion per month.

For Jie Ming, this was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue.

Red Dust Potion was his important stable source of points at the current stage, and it was the key bargaining chip for him to obtain help in manufacturing the Tier 7 elemental pool!

He immediately permeated his spiritual power into the depths of the Golden Garden, carefully checking the state of every rune seal absorbing Red Dust Qi.

Unfortunately, and as Jie Ming expected, there was nothing wrong with these rune seals.

"Sigh, I didn't expect this day to come so soon." Sighing, Jie Ming left the laboratory for the first time in a long while, walked to the top floor of his mansion, and overlooked the endless sea of flowers below.

On the outskirts of the sea of flowers were the cities that those indigenous people had gradually built over these years.

Those cities where mortals lived were still noisy and bustling; birth, aging, sickness, and death, joys and sorrows, love and hate, various social activities were all proceeding in an orderly manner.

On the surface, everything was normal, without any anomalies.

But Jie Ming knew very well that something fundamental had changed silently.

Red Dust Qi is an extremely special conceptual material, and its source itself is the complex concepts generated in human social activities.

Including but not limited to faith, emotion, culture, collision of ideas, etc.

It was born from the prosperity of civilization and the intense interweaving of the free will of living beings.

The Golden Garden of Jie Ming, as an area controlled by him, had its Red Dust Qi production plummet precisely because of changes in concept.

"It seems that the Nuolun Workshop has also put in a lot of effort over the years; I'm afraid the entire Elosia main plane has been almost completely transformed." Jie Ming sighed helplessly.

He recalled the conclusion he reached after trying at the Nuolun Academy: planes controlled by wizards generally cannot produce Red Dust Qi.

The reason is simple: under the regulation of wizards, the living environment of the creatures in the entire plane has quietly changed from a "society" to a "farm."

Although on the surface, the planes controlled by wizards are stable and harmonious, there is no change.

For the sake of the plane's stability and efficient output of resources, wizards often optimize the social structure of the plane, eliminate internal strife, provide sufficient food and water, and even solve various diseases.

Such a society, from the perspective of mortals, is undoubtedly a peaceful and prosperous age.

However, conceptually speaking, from the moment it was ruled by wizards, all social activities in the entire plane obtained nutrients based on the "supply" of wizards.

Human survival no longer relies on their own struggle and the natural evolution of society, but on the order and bestowal of wizards.

It is not just their own lives; wizards themselves have reserved upward channels for the planes they control: becoming a wizard. This stability of being "fed," while eliminating turmoil, also invisibly stifles the conceptual activity that a "society" should have.

People do not need to compete fiercely for survival, do not need to be anxious and confused about the future, and all conflicts and contradictions are calmed by the order of wizards.

This conceptual "stability" and "harmony," while bringing material abundance, also caused Red Dust Qi, as a conceptual material, to lose its most fundamental breeding soil—that conflict, struggle, and creativity from free will.

Jie Ming wanted to do something, but felt a sense of helplessness.

He considered himself to have tried his best not to interfere with the lives of the indigenous people of the Golden Garden.

Except for the initial reconstruction of order and some necessary transformations, he did not treat the residents as mere livestock to be kept in captivity like other wizards.

He allowed them to retain their own culture, fall in love freely, and even quarrel and fight, as long as it didn't affect the overall situation.

But as an existence that controls many planes, wizards are still too rich in resources.

Even the "alms" that Jie Ming thought were barren still provided more resources and a better environment for the indigenous people, making those indigenous people he received surround the Golden Garden into a more prosperous "society."

It was also because of this reason that his own "control" eroded the "society" concept.

His existence, the wizard order he represented, fundamentally changed the "origin" concept of the Golden Garden.

The production of Red Dust Qi continued to plummet year by year, from being more than enough at the beginning to barely maintaining, until this year, when even the raw materials for two vials of Red Dust Potion per month could not be gathered.

This is no small matter!

The reason why those high-tier wizards of the Nuolun Academy Alchemy Sect were willing to refine a Tier 7 large elemental pool for him was most directly because they saw his ability to earn points through Red Dust Potion.

Two vials of Red Dust Potion per month were not only repaying debts but also showing his technical level and potential.

If the supply is cut off now, it will be almost impossible for him to find an opportunity to ask someone to help manufacture a Tier 7 large elemental pool next time.

His entire plane transformation plan will be indefinitely shelved.

The method to solve this dilemma is, fundamentally, very simple: go find a new "society."

"It seems it's time to start the next war."

Wanting to find a society not dominated by wizards means he must leave the Elosia plane, or even leave the planes owned by wizards, and take the initiative to attack.

Head to those primitive planes not yet controlled by wizards, find new life civilizations, and extract the required Red Dust Qi from them.

Although there was still a lot of research unfinished, and although he had just broken free from the research frenzy brought by the "Eye of Omnipotence," Jie Ming had to set off early to fight in other planes.

And in Jie Ming's view, participating in plane wars is actually a very good reason.

After all, plane war is the common obligation of all wizards and an important way for wizard civilization to maintain its own strength and expansion.

As a wizard of the Nuolun Workshop, actively participating in plane wars is complete "political correctness."

As a common obligation of all wizards, Clark and Clark's mentor should also be able to understand his behavior of briefly not providing Red Dust Potion during the war.

This is much more reasonable than him simply saying "Red Dust Qi is not enough,"

and easier to be accepted.

In this way, not only can he find a new source of Red Dust Qi, but he can also delay for a considerable amount of time; it is truly a win-win!

Jie Ming quickly made a decision in his heart and immediately contacted Mentor Clark through the magic network terminal.

"Mentor, I am preparing to start a new plane war." Jie Ming's tone was calm, trying his best to make his demeanor appear normal.

On the other end of the communication, Mentor Clark was silent for a moment, seemingly a bit surprised by Jie Ming's quick decision.

But he didn't ask for the reason, just responded simply and powerfully: "Very well. There wasn't much rest time left before your next expedition anyway. It just so happens that the Nuolun Workshop also has a new plane expansion plan recently; I will arrange a target suitable for you."

"Okay, thank you for your trouble, Mentor." As he said this, Jie Ming seemed to remember something. "I will send you the two vials of potion for this month later. Please allow me to make the potions missed during the war after I return from the front line."

Clark suddenly looked up at him, a playful look in his eyes. It wasn't until Jie Ming started to break out in a cold sweat behind his back that he nodded slowly: "No rush for this; we'll talk after you return from the front line."

"Yes."

Ending the communication with Mentor Clark, Jie Ming couldn't help but wipe the non-existent sweat from his forehead.

He took a deep breath, and a burning fighting spirit reignited in his eyes.

Research and exploration are certainly important, but the acquisition of knowledge and the control of resources are the eternal themes of wizards.

Having been busy for so many years, he also really needed to verify his research. ===== CHAPTER 163 =====