Chapter 1100: Introducing the Tower of Time Model, No Longer Keeping a Low Profile

Iolum was no stranger to the name Tower of Time; in fact, he could be said to be quite familiar with it. Ever since Saville was exiled to another plane, he had sent people to the Nan Jing every so often to keep track of the developments regarding the Savile Territory and the Tower of Time.

Over these years, he had also frequently had Buluode provide some necessary support and aid to the Savile Territory, the most recent instance being his public support two years ago for the Arcane Competition held by the Savile Territory.

At that time, the Tower of Time's strength was in severe decline; without his support, holding such an Arcane Competition would only have invited the mockery of busybodies and the covetousness of the greedy.

But what he had not expected was that in just two years, the Tower of Time would undergo such a massive transformation!

After receiving a definitive answer from Kangjienio, Iolum looked at this young man, who still maintained a humble and respectful attitude, and a desire to investigate was instantly ignited in his heart. At the same time, he roughly guessed why Kangjienio had brought him over.

Just then, Kangjienio had already explained the source and approximate number of the Tower of Time's apprentices to Iolum, and subsequently, he said to Xia Duo:

"Continue explaining how the Tower of Time organizes teaching for so many apprentices, and how the issue of various material consumption is resolved."

"Yes, Master!"

Following this, Xia Duo briefly introduced the current academy-style teaching model of the Tower of Time—

"I have divided the apprentices into three levels. Those currently receiving magical enlightenment are Level 1 Apprentices; after completing enlightenment, they become Level 2 Apprentices. The set of textbooks you just saw is the content for Level 2 Apprentices. Once they have learned everything, they become Level 3 Apprentices, after which they wait to be promoted to Official Mage.

"Compared to the past, where the Tower of Time had apprentices exchange Gold Coins for knowledge and facilities—a free-range or, rather, exploitative model—the current Tower of Time has fully opened up basic knowledge and arranged fixed teaching staff to conduct classes according to different learning progress.

"Although knowledge and facilities are free, to prevent apprentices from losing their motivation, the Tower of Time signs a three-year contract with every apprentice. If they cannot become an Official Mage within three years, they must repay the training costs incurred by the Tower of Time. While the amount is not large—only 1000 Gold Coins—it is still a considerable pressure."

Speaking to this point, Xia Duo paused slightly to give the two Great Arcanists time to process this. Becoming an Official Mage in three years was indeed a bit shocking; he had originally considered whether or not to say it.

But after Iolum arrived, it was not hard for him to guess that Kangjienio intended to act as a bridge between him and Iolum, and it was highly likely related to these textbooks or the academy-style teaching model.

Therefore, he decided to release some substantial information.

Sure enough, when he spoke of the contents of the three-year contract, the two Great Arcanists, who had long experienced the ways of the world, could not help but reveal expressions of shock.

In fact, this was easy to understand; the reason for setting a three-year contract was precisely to cultivate apprentices into Official Mages within three years.

And the current apprentices of the Tower of Time had not undergone deliberate selection, only selection based on age. This meant that other youths, or even adults, elsewhere could potentially complete the apprentice process and become Official Mages within three years.

In other words, the Tower of Time was using its own practical actions to verify the feasibility of universal mages.

What universal mages meant required no excessive explanation from Xia Duo; the two Great Arcanists naturally had their own judgments. That would be a development potential and war potential far exceeding that of the Elves.

Of course, wanting to truly realize the long-term goal of universal mages was not that easy, and the most critical factor among them was the issue of material consumption.

If nothing else, wanting to cultivate apprentices in batches would at least require a Spell Laboratory, so that apprentices could conduct various spell practices or experiments in relatively safe conditions.

A Mage is inherently a highly practical profession. If one cannot even cast spells or is unfamiliar with them, even with more theoretical knowledge, it is very difficult to convert it into actual productivity (including combat power and many other aspects).

And how could the establishment and maintenance of a Spell Laboratory be realized without a foundation of massive resources!

Clearly, the two Great Arcanists were also exceptionally concerned about this issue, so Xia Duo continued:

"The Tower of Time is indeed under great pressure to cultivate so many apprentices at once, but I believe that pressure creates motivation.

"Currently, the Tower of Time has already achieved a market-leading advantage in the field of Magic Item manufacturing, and we are now using the profits from Magic Items to subsidize the expenses of apprentice training.

"And once this batch of apprentices cultivated through the academy model grows up, they will bring even stronger development momentum to the Tower of Time."

This is actually a snowball effect; as long as it is operated properly, the snowball will definitely get bigger and bigger.

After hearing Xia Duo's explanation, Iolum seemed to recall something and suddenly asked: "Is the advantage in Magic Item manufacturing you mentioned referring to the Magic Net Background Communication Artifact that has been very popular in Seventon recently?"

"Yes, the cost for the Tower of Time to manufacture a communication artifact is much lower than in the past, and the profits from this part can barely cover the expenses of apprentice training."

Xia Duo did not go into detail about the specific costs, and Iolum did not press for more, simply lowering his head slightly and pondering silently.

Just a short while ago, after completing the handover of work related to the Arcane Union with Kangjienio, Iolum had received news that there was an abnormal fluctuation in the price of Magic Net Background Communication Artifacts in Seventon, suspected to be the emergence of low-cost manufacturing technology, with manufacturers shipping in large quantities.

Afterward, he had arranged for people to investigate the matter; thinking about it now, there should be results!

For a moment, the Study fell into silence. Just as Xia Duo thought he had said something wrong and displeased Iolum, a teleportation light appeared in the Study once again.

A stack of Parchment Documents appeared in Iolum's hand. At this moment, both Xia Duo and Iolum were standing, and the distance between them was not far.

With Xia Duo's vision, he easily saw a line of text on the first page of that stack of Parchment Documents—"Investigation into the Continued Decline in Prices of Magic Net Background Communication Artifacts."

Wasn't this the same document he had seen in the Administrative Office Area when he came over!

And the next moment, Iolum handed the investigation report to him. Xia Duo took the report, flipped through it quickly and roughly, and felt an indescribable sensation in his heart.

This report was extremely detailed, detailed even to the point of obtaining the internal sales data of the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce, and it also made the inference that the Tower of Time must have mastered a lower-cost Magic Item manufacturing technology, only needing time to crack it.

Xia Duo knew it was necessary to register a patent for "Everlasting Magic Technology" as soon as possible!

Perhaps the Tower of Time in the past would have found it difficult to withstand the influence brought by such a patent with very broad prospects, but now it was perfectly capable.

Just like when Xia Duo launched the Magic Net Background Communication to snipe the negotiations between Lord Hawk and the Arcane Union regarding new communication spells, he could only transfer it to Giles Tower to avoid those potentially malicious gazes when he was weak.

But now, as a Senior Arcanist, it could be said that his information was definitely already on the desks of many lords and leaders of Mage Tower organizations.

Being low-key now would instead bring unfavorable influences.