Chapter 884: Mind Barrier, Returning

Just as Xia Duo finished speaking, a strange expression appeared on Greta's face. She stared straight at Xia Duo for two seconds before slowly opening her mouth:

"Do not underestimate the Seven Towers! Even if there is no absolute fairness among spellcasters, at the very least, they follow certain principles of equivalent exchange. Besides, the mind spell you used in the Green Field Plane has a similar existence within the Seven Towers; it is just that not everyone possesses a powerful consciousness like yours, sufficient to integrate vast and chaotic subconscious information."

As expected!

Xia Duo sighed inwardly. The Seven Towers had indeed investigated 【Mind Link】—perhaps they had investigated it while they were repairing the Magic Net—and the Seven Towers even knew where the limitations of this spell lay.

If there were no hub capable of interpreting subconscious information, the so-called Mind Link would be nothing more than an instant messaging spell similar to a group chat.

Additionally, one must also consider the privacy issues of the linked individuals.

Viewed in this light, this spell might truly not be as important as he had thought. Yet, just as Xia Duo assumed Greta was going to refuse him, Greta gave him a rather unexpected answer:

"Although the Seven Towers does not care, I personally feel that your spell has great potential for development. If you are willing, I would like to make a trade with you in a personal capacity!"

"What kind of trade?" Xia Duo asked.

"I have noticed that you carry the 【Pioneer Scepter】 in every situation, and what I want to trade with you is related to the 【Pioneer Scepter】!"

Related to the 【Pioneer Scepter】?

Xia Duo felt a surge of heat in his heart. The reason he carried the 【Pioneer Scepter】 was precisely because it was immune to mind spells! Could it be that what Greta wanted to trade was the spell within the scepter?

This—

"Lady Greta, please explain in detail!" Xia Duo was already somewhat impatient.

And Greta truly did not let him down. "Beyond being able to leave a lord's mark, the most important ability of the 【Pioneer Scepter】 is its immunity to mind spells, and the realization of this ability relies on a spell named 【Mind Barrier】, which is also the object I want to exchange with you this time!"

"Lady Greta, are you saying you want to exchange 【Mind Barrier】 for my 【Mind Link】?"

"Yes!"

"I agree!"

With almost no hesitation, Xia Duo immediately gave his answer. To be honest, in the long run, he would sooner or later be able to analyze 【Mind Barrier】 from the 【Pioneer Scepter】.

But how soon "sooner or later" would be was hard to gauge. If he could obtain it in advance, it was certainly not a bad thing.

After all, a scepter is a physical object, and there is always a risk of it being lost or damaged, but a spell is knowledge; once obtained, it cannot be lost.

Furthermore, 【Mind Barrier】 might be related to mind amulets. If he could master this spell, he might even be able to get involved in the mind amulet business.

One must know that although mind spells are not considered true taboos in Netheril, compared to those spells with intuitive effects, this type of spell still carries a somewhat dark hue.

Being guarded against by others is only natural; mind amulets are almost essential items for any merchant to carry, and territory officials are also loyal consumers of mind amulets.

Even for spellcasters, they are not necessarily stronger than ordinary people in terms of the mind. If they have the opportunity and financial means to purchase a mind amulet, how could they not buy one!

From this perspective, Greta was not just exchanging a spell with him, but an opportunity to make a fortune.

While Xia Duo was happy, he could not help but feel a bit apprehensive. The transmigrator's persecution complex was starting to sprout again, making him feel that Archmage Greta was plotting some conspiracy.

However, emotional judgments often deviate from reality. Xia Duo did not reject emotion; he even valued it highly, as this is the essence of being human.

But if one lets emotion run rampant, one will be driven by various moods, ultimately triggering disasters that are difficult to undo.

Xia Duo certainly did not possess only emotion; he also had reason. Of course, he could not achieve absolute reason either—if he did, could a person still be called a person? It would be more reasonable to call them a stone or a robot!

Human nature is the product of the interweaving of emotion and reason. It does not work well if either side is missing, or rather, if either side is missing, it counts as losing one's self, which is to say, death!

However, with the development of cognition, the ratio of emotion to reason will also adjust. Perhaps there will be a day of absolute reason or absolute emotion, but that is something that develops gradually, not achieved in an instant.

Even if that possibility exists in the future, it is not what the current Xia Duo hopes for, and it is something he strives to avoid.

At this moment, although Xia Duo felt apprehensive, the presence of reason still made him quickly realize that Greta might not care at all about the extended developments brought by 【Mind Barrier】.

Or perhaps, this was simply an investment disguised as a trade.

After all, as a follower of the Princess, what reason would Greta have to harm Niya's husband, who was also a member of the Seven Towers faction and valued by the Princess?

In a flash, Xia Duo traced the source of his apprehension and further guided it with reason. After this entire process, he felt as if he had undergone a meditation, gaining a deeper control over his own consciousness.

Soon, both sides began to exchange spells. Xia Duo provided a pre-prepared Learning Scroll, while Greta directly provided a spellbook titled "Greta's Mind Protection."

The author, as the name suggests, was Greta herself!

Xia Duo was certain he had not seen this book in the library of Giles Tower, which made him even more certain that Giles Tower had other libraries.

Perhaps there would be a chance to go in and scavenge some more in the future!

After the exchange was completed, Greta did not even check the scroll and directly put it away. Since she had done so, it was not appropriate for Xia Duo to go and check the spellbook either.

But then again, neither Xia Duo nor Greta had any reason to play any tricks on this, as there would still be plenty of opportunities to deal with each other in the future!

"Go back. Return to your territory and prepare. After the inspection ends, come to Saivendun with Niya to attend the Award Ceremony! The Keman ambassador will also attend this ceremony, so don't miss it!"

Speaking to the end, Greta could not help but laugh out loud.

Xia Duo felt very surprised to hear this news. He did not know if the Keman ambassador was attending voluntarily or by invitation; they certainly had a lot of nerve!

However, this also allowed him to smell a hint of danger. Previously, when he was in the Green Field Plane, he felt that this joint operation was more like ideological mobilization before a war, and that there would be a real war later.

Now, this premonition was even stronger.

After leaving Greta, Xia Duo had originally wanted to stay in Saivendun for a few more days to hold a few more exchange meetings to promote his "Principles" book and the Tower of Time's Communication Magic Tool.

But now that he knew the Saivendun Council was about to send inspection personnel, even though Xia Duo had great confidence in his territory, he had no choice but to return to his territory early to prepare.