Chapter 61: Island's First Magic Method Center

There were a total of seventeen recruited mages, all scholar‑type, each with their own specialty.

When Luosen found them, they were standing by the wall of the first level of the hall's staircase, some looking bewildered at the bustling crowd.

Everyone was busy, and for a moment no one could attend to them.

Seeing Luosen arrive, the mages breathed a sigh of relief, came forward one by one to salute him, their demeanor much more respectful than before.

Each mage clearly realized that the young man before them was a lord with actual authority, and that they were on his domain.

Showing basic respect to the owner of a piece of land is a wise move for a smart person.

Luosen addressed the group: "Come, I'll take you to the lodging. It's not the best, but I've had it hurriedly repaired, so it should be decent."

Every castle has a place to receive distinguished guests, and Crescent Castle is no exception.

It is located in the castle's rear courtyard, a yard walled off with white stone, within which a set of relatively high‑quality two‑story wooden buildings has been erected.

Yet one can see that the small buildings are already quite old, and the courtyard has been uninhabited for a long time.

Thus many carpenters are striving to mend the damage, and numerous servants are sweeping the courtyard.

On the open ground of the courtyard, many wooden crates and bundles are placed, containing various magic method items.

Luosen, leading the mages, stood before a fully repaired wooden house, his face full of apology.

"The temporary conditions are still rather crude; I ask you all to endure a bit. Once the island's situation stabilizes, I will promptly provide you with new residences."

The Artificer Alonso and the potion‑master Weige are both people who have endured great hardships; they are not fussy about material conditions, but they care deeply about the quality of magic method supplies.

Alonso walked to the supply crate: "Lord, these boxes bear my name. May I open them and take a look?"

"Of course."

Alonso carefully opened it and found a small melting pot for high‑temperature alchemy; when he took it out and examined it closely, he was instantly astonished.

"A spherical multi‑temperature layer crucible—this is a rare premium item. Where did it come from?"

Not even Shire County can obtain this; the entire Weilan Island can't buy it, one must import it specially from the White Continent.

Beside him, Weige was instantly drawn in, walked over to scrutinize it, and immediately reached a conclusion.

"It's a premium product from Levinde Crystal Valley. See this multi‑layered triangular mark—it means it was crafted by the apprentice of Master Henri VII, and personally certified by the Master."

The Kao mages had been evaluating the wooden house's merits, and Jiatelan immediately went to open his own supply crate.

Opening it, he was also astonished: "A high‑speed flow‑testing tube, first‑grade goods from the Emerald Factory. This thing is really good!"

At that point, the Kao mages could no longer mind the crude lodging and rushed to inspect their own crates.

As more and more crates were opened, they found that most of the contents were fine items from Levinde.

Weige couldn't help asking, "Lord, these items are valuable; where did you obtain them?"

She made a rough calculation: even if purchased within Levinde, their total value would already approach forty thousand Ogres, let alone acquiring them in a northern town of Weilan.

She couldn't understand where Luosen had sourced this batch of fine goods.

Luosen naturally wouldn't reveal his secret dealings with Muradi; he gave a faint smile but offered no explanation.

Alonso looked around and said, "Lord, the quality of this equipment far exceeds my expectations. But where is the laboratory to house these treasures?"

Master Luowakado and the other Kao mages shared the same doubt.

Although this batch of equipment is excellent, it has stringent requirements for storage and operating conditions.

They could not see any suitable placement nearby.

Luosen, of course, had already prepared.

He pointed to a nearby small wooden house: "Look over there, that's the entrance to a small wine cellar."

"I've already cleared out this cellar; shall we all go down and take a look?"

For scholar‑type mages, a Magic Method Laboratory is their second life.

Each mage places great importance on this matter.

The mages also know that when conditions are crude, constructing an underground Magic Method Laboratory is indeed a decent stopgap.

So the group followed Luosen into the cellar.

As soon as they entered, Weige shook her head: "No, this place is too small; even a single person would find it cramped, let alone so many of us."

The cellar is reserved for distinguished guests' wine storage, with a ceiling height of three meters and an area of about fifty square meters—indeed rather small.

Luosen smiled faintly, raised his hand, tapped the floor, and released a Transformation Technique.

The ground instantly shifted rapidly, revealing a three‑dimensional underground structural diagram.

"Everyone, look: this is the soil layer surrounding the underground cellar."

"You can see that the nearby expanse is compact, homogeneous yellow clay."

"By appropriately transforming the soil layer, we can safely expand this cellar's area to more than five times its current size."

"If you trust me, I can employ an extraordinary Transformation Technique to swiftly create a safe, sturdy double‑layer underground chamber, each layer covering nearly half a mu."

As he spoke, the three‑dimensional diagram on the ground also transformed rapidly under the Transformation Technique, eventually becoming a large double‑layer underground chamber.

It looked beautiful, spacious, and solid.

But constructing underground structures is no trivial matter; without proper expertise, one risks anything from leaks to collapse.

Alonso had already studied Luosen's Transmutation Alchemy carefully and knew Luosen's claim was sound.

Yet he still had doubts: "Lord, how do you solve the problem of underground seepage?"

Luosen smiled: "If you examine the diagram closely, you'll notice many special drainage channels. By using these channels together with some rune assistance, we can fully divert all wastewater into the castle's sewage system."

"Of course, for safety I also deliberately set up a wastewater pool to store experimental sewage; see, it's right here."

Alonso inspected closely and indeed found many intricate structures, feeling both surprised and embarrassed.

"Hmm— alright, I overlooked that. Lord, have you also studied architecture?"

Luosen nodded: "I have indeed studied it carefully, and have also researched settlement and deformation of various soil layers, having carried out many practical experiments."

Alonso, convinced by Luosen's magical achievements, nodded in agreement.

"Then I have no problem."

Weige immediately asked, "What about underground ventilation? You know, the Magic Method Laboratory must suppress power fluctuations, so we can't use an airflow formation." Luosen smiled slightly, "I installed a dedicated ventilation duct and use a Low-level Wind-guiding Formation at the far end on the surface, which fully meets the requirement."

Master Luwakado then asked, "I have a question."

"As is well known, transformation energy remains in the transformed object to maintain the effect. As this energy gradually dissipates, the transformation effect fades, and many hidden hazards may arise."

Luosen said nothing and looked toward Alonso beside him.

Alonso shrugged and began to explain on his behalf.

"Master, the standard Transformation Technique indeed has this issue; when transforming living beings, one must consider it. But our transformation target this time is a non‑living element of nature."

"Look at the surrounding soil layers; they're all compacted yellow clay with uniform texture, which is the simplest transformation target."

Seeing that the Kao mages still didn't understand, Alonso instantly felt a sense of scholarly superiority.

He explained with even more vigor.

"Soil and rock are essentially the same in nature."

"Soil is water‑mixed rock broken into powder, while rock is dense, dry soil."

"Through certain extraordinary Transformation Techniques, one can squeeze the moisture out of the soil and make it extremely dense and solid. Even without the support of transformation energy, the new structure can remain stable."

Master Luwakado's face showed doubt: "It sounds good, but whether it works can only be confirmed through practice."

"How about you demonstrate it?"

Alonso instantly looked embarrassed: "Um, I'm not quite proficient yet."

Luosen timely took over the conversation.

"I'm familiar with this, but to achieve it requires mid‑level magical strength. So, who will link a soul bridge with me so I can borrow some magic?"

The mages glanced at one another, and finally Weige stepped forward.

"My magic reached high‑tier two days ago; let me help the lord gather the transformation energy."

Luosen naturally didn't refuse; after skillfully constructing the soul bridge, he said, "Begin, Ms. Weige."

Weige, as instructed, condensed the transformation energy.

A pure white condensed light appeared in her hand.

Immediately after, the condensed light was seized by an invisible will and drifted toward the nearby earthen wall.

Splash~~~ crack~~~

A sound like stirring wet clay filled the air; the cellar's earthen wall kept receding, while clear water surged out of the wall at an almost violent speed.

"Alonso, check the location of the castle's underground sewage pipes and help drain the clear water out."

"Alright, my lord."

Alonso also employed the Transformation Technique, creating a temporary drainage pipe that expelled the clear water squeezed from the clay layer.

After five minutes, the basement expanded by over fifty square meters, and Weige began to struggle to keep up.

"Lord, my magic is nearly exhausted; let someone else take over."

Master Luwakado's eyes lit up, and he immediately replied, "I'll take it."

The transformation continued.

As a Four-ring 30-star Arcane Master, his condensed transformation energy was pure and powerful.

The basement's expansion speed suddenly accelerated further.

By the time Luwakado's magic was depleted, the basement had formed a double‑layer structure, each layer covering an astonishing 400 square meters.

But many fine structures still needed refinement.

The three senior High-tier Mages of Kao immediately replaced the master.

Kao's mid‑ and low‑level Mages assisted Alonso in draining the massive clear water that surged from the soil after the transformation.

When the three senior High-tier Mages also ran out of magic, a large underground Magic Method Laboratory—double‑layered, each layer over 3 meters tall and more than 400 square meters, containing various intricate structures—was finally complete.

The laboratory's walls were yellow‑white and felt extremely smooth, like jade. The floor was matte, feeling like pebbles underfoot—non‑slippery and comfortable.

Each supporting pillar and the reinforced buttresses on the side walls, while ensuring the basement's structural stability, were also transformed by Luosen into numerous epic‑styled artistic reliefs, adding lively atmosphere to the otherwise monotonous underground hall.

On the ceiling, many Light Element runes specific to the laboratory were also formed through transformation.

The mages only need to apply the Light Brightness Technique, and it will firmly 'adhere' to the runes, providing stable illumination while maximally suppressing power leakage.

Finally, the laboratory was divided into three relatively independent zones: Alonso's forging chamber, Weige's potion lab, and the Kao mages' weapon development area.

Most crucially, every detail was exquisitely crafted; the naked eye could not spot the slightest flaw.

It was evident that the mages were extremely satisfied with this exquisite underground laboratory.

Each mage kept looking around and touching things, never stopping.

Now everything is ready; only equipment and materials are missing.

Luosen looked at Stonard, who had been silently standing by his side.

"Shitou, go arrange people to bring in all the equipment and materials, be meticulous and also do your best to meet the gentlemen and ladies' requirements."

Such auxiliary tasks are best handled by Shitou the mage; Ailiya, with her clumsy warrior ways, could only stare helplessly.

Shitou immediately turned around to take care of it.

At this moment, Weige suggested, "Lord, shouldn't we give this fine place a name?"

Alonso added, "Exactly, it needs a name; otherwise it feels informal."

The Kao mages all agreed.

Luosen thought for a moment, then smiled, "Let's call it the Island's First Magic Method Center."

"Because this is the first and most important Magic Method Laboratory on White Sturgeon Island."

The name sounded grand, and the mages all nodded in agreement.

Thus, Luosen, at the underground entrance of the laboratory, used solemn, grandiose relief lettering to carefully inscribe the laboratory's name.

(End of Chapter)