Chapter 125

The two agreed to meet at the school's South Gate at noon tomorrow and head to Lizard Alley.

After Andre left, Luo En returned to the study in his workshop, his thoughts surging like a tide.

After long contemplation, he decided to make full preparations to ensure this trip would be safe.

He took out a piece of paper and began to list the items he needed to carry:

A few bottles of recovery potions, two bottles of defensive potions, one bottle of speed enhancer, and a few alchemical flashbangs.

Although the transition to a Bloodline Knight had significantly improved his physique, facing the potential dangers of Lizard Alley, it was never wrong to be extra prepared.

Oliver stood in his private residence on the top floor of the high tower, looking down at the scenery of the Black Mist Forest through the window.

As night fell, countless magic crystal lamps lit up throughout the school, like stars scattered in the dark forest.

Strange lights occasionally flickered in the distant experimental area, accompanied by low rumbling sounds; that was some wizard conducting extraordinary experiments.

This scene should have been refreshing, but Oliver's expression was unusually gloomy.

On his desk lay the latest ranking list of the candidate wizard sequence, with a certain name specially circled in red ink—Luo En Ralph.

"Twenty-fourth... rose by six places..." Oliver whispered to himself, his fingers tapping on the desk: "This kid's rise is a bit too fast."

The candidate wizard sequence had a total of thirty members, all of whom were the most promising mid-level and high-level apprentices in the school.

A higher ranking meant more resources and opportunities, and also represented more attention from the school's upper management.

"'Drug-Body Resonance'" Oliver whispered; this was Luo En's publicly known special talent and one of the important reasons for his rapid rise:

"It is indeed a rare talent; no wonder Mentor Corinna would be interested in him."

Mentioning Corinna, Oliver's expression became even more complex.

As an important official wizard within the school, every move Corinna made was highly scrutinized.

The interest she had shown in Luo En recently had already caused quite a bit of speculation.

Oliver picked up a glass of red liquid and sipped it slowly.

This was a special magic potion that could soothe mental fatigue, carrying a faint strawberry aroma, but the aftertaste was a hint of bitterness.

Just as complex as his current mood.

"Dawode..." Oliver sighed, recalling the accident from a few months ago.

Originally, that was just a small trick aimed at Holt.

He had secretly planted a bit of psychological suggestion in Dawode, making that already mentally unstable apprentice even more paranoid, thereby creating some trouble for Holt during his patrol.

Who knew that after Dawode completely lost control, he also let a batch of precious research materials fall into Luo En's hands.

"Counterproductive..." Oliver gave a wry smile and put down the wine glass.

He had originally thought those materials were useless to Luo En, especially those research notes on sonic spells.

Everyone in the school who had studied them believed that Dawode's sonic spell concept had fundamental flaws, was difficult to perfect, and had limited value.

Even the complete memory fragments Oliver extracted from Dawode's brain only confirmed this point.

The theoretical framework of sonic spells itself had problems, the energy structure was unstable, and it was simply impossible to form a truly effective spell model.

"Strange..." Oliver said to himself:

"I clearly extracted the complete memory fragments from Dawode's brain, including all his research results, but those materials were clearly incomplete. Could he have hidden something elsewhere?"

This question had been bothering him, especially since he recently heard that Luo En seemed to have mastered some kind of enhanced sonic spell, which deepened his doubts.

He walked to the bookshelf and pressed a hidden mechanism.

The bookshelf slowly moved aside, revealing a secret door.

Passing through a narrow passage, he arrived at a secret room.

In the center of the room was a huge cage made of a special alloy, inside which a twisted figure was curled up.

That creature was neither human nor beast, its limbs extended disproportionately, and black patterns covered its skin, flowing like ink.

The only feature that still retained human characteristics was that twisted but still recognizable face—that had once been his brother, Ma Kusi.

Earlier, he had learned of Karl's death through the secret channels of the law enforcement team.

That low-level apprentice who always took commissions in the edge forest was found dead on the outskirts of the North District, his body covered in traces of distortion and pollution.

He knew very well the real reason for Karl's death—it was caused by the loss of control of the stitched experimental subject he used to test the effect of the "Sin Domain Black Crystal."

And that experimental subject was none other than his failed brother, Ma Kusi.

"Good evening, Ma Kusi." Oliver said softly, his voice full of exhaustion.

The creature in the cage suddenly raised its head, emitting a sound between a hiss and a cry.

Those eyes that were once similar to Oliver's were now filled with pitch-black liquid, leaving only a faint crimson dot in the center.

"I brought new..." Oliver paused and took a black crystal from his bosom: "This should be able to alleviate your pain."

Ma Kusi's attention, however, was not attracted by the black crystal.

His ferocious face turned toward the wall, where the latest candidate wizard sequence ranking list was posted.

Rolling black liquid overflowed from his eyes, falling to the ground with a slight hissing sound, and the ground was instantly eroded into several small holes.

Following Ma Kusi's gaze, Oliver saw Luo En's photo on that list.

At some point, Ma Kusi's claws had already scratched deep marks into the ground, almost tearing the metal floor.

"You noticed him too?" Oliver gave a wry smile: "Yes, that kid's rise is abnormally fast."

Ma Kusi let out a low roar, as if responding to Oliver's words.

Putting down the black crystal, Oliver prepared to leave the secret room.

His recent situation made him feel unprecedentedly depressed.

Cynthia almost never met with him anymore; she seemed to have found her own stable channel for obtaining "Sin Domain Black Crystals."

"Those guys..." Oliver clenched his fists: "They must have bypassed me and contacted Cynthia directly."

What worried him even more was that his mentor's gaze toward him had become increasingly strange recently.

That scrutinizing look made his hair stand on end, as if all his secrets had been seen through.

"I'm in trouble, aren't I?" Oliver muttered to himself.

He knew he had fewer and fewer choices.

Continuing to rely on "Sin Domain Black Crystals" to increase his power meant greater risks, as he could be discovered by the school at any time;

but if he stopped using them, his ranking in the candidate wizard sequence would inevitably slide, and for an ambitious high-level apprentice, that was no different from a slow death.

Perhaps using the Sin Domain Black Crystal to fully awaken and then defecting from the school was his last choice.

Although this path was full of danger, at least there was a glimmer of hope.

Oliver closed his eyes in pain, his temples throbbing.

He felt an unprecedented exhaustion and despair, as if standing on the edge of a cliff, with pursuers behind him and a bottomless abyss in front.

And in the secret room, the mutated Ma Kusi was still staring fixedly at Luo En's photo on the wall, pitch-black liquid oozing from all over his body, gathering into a constantly wriggling black lake at the bottom of the cage.

His claws were still scratching the ground incessantly, the metal making sharp sounds, piercing the already irritable Oliver, who frowned and pressed the electric shock button...

"Aoooooo..."

The next day at noon, Luo En and Andre met at the South Gate as agreed.

Andre was wearing light clothing suitable for movement today, with a sharp longsword at his waist.

Luo En was wearing an ordinary dark robe, holding a seemingly ordinary wooden staff, which was actually a disguise for his ironwood sword.

"Ready?" Andre asked, excitement shining in his eyes.

Luo En nodded: "Everything is ready. Let's go."

Leaving the school area, the two chose a secluded path to head to Lizard Alley.

Compared to their last visit, they were more familiar with the route this time, and their speed was faster.

On the way, Luo En briefly explained his purpose for this trip to Andre:

"I need to find that old hag who sent people to attack us last time; she might have the information I need."

"Old hag? You mean that terrifying old woman with yellow skin and sunken eyes?" Andre recalled:

"I couldn't see anything special about her, but if she really sent people to attack us, then she must have some unusual abilities."

Luo En nodded, confirming his guess: "Exactly, but this time we are fully prepared and won't be easily schemed against."

Passing through the dark path, the mycelial network of the Peeper Mushroom spread out under their feet like a spider web.

Luo En noticed that the mushrooms were more active today than last time, the patterns on the caps flickering with faint fluorescence, as if transmitting some kind of information.

At the entrance of Lizard Alley, the multi-headed dragon totem on the stone pillar looked exceptionally ferocious in the dim light.

Passing through the archway, the two stepped into the familiar chaotic market.

Lizard Alley was even more noisy and crowded today than when they last came.

The hawking of various alien merchants rose and fell, and the air was filled with a complex smell mixed with spices, herbs, and the body fluids of some unknown creatures.

"We took a shortcut this time; the Sunset Tavern should be a bit further away." Luo En pointed in one direction:

"Let's go find the Gray Dwarf Otto first; he should know about that old hag."

The two passed through the noisy crowd and arrived at the Sunset Tavern.

Compared to last time, there were more customers in the tavern, and the atmosphere was even more boisterous.

Passing through the crowded hall, because of their friendly transaction last time, they no longer needed to be restricted at the door, and they familiarly found their way to Otto's cubicle.

The Gray Dwarf was sitting there, with several potions of different colors in front of him, his expression focused as he checked something.

Seeing Luo En and Andre, he was stunned for a moment, then revealed a cunning smile.

"Ah, it's you two!"

Otto greeted them in a rough voice: "Long time no see, what good things do you want today?"

Luo En didn't exchange pleasantries and went straight to the point: "I'm looking for someone."

He took out a piece of paper with a lifelike portrait of an old hag on it, every wrinkle and every spot drawn with extreme precision—thanks to the photographic memory brought by his "Broad Knowledge" trait.

Otto glanced at the portrait, his expression instantly becoming vigilant: "This old woman... what are you looking for her for?"

"She wasn't very friendly to us last time, and I want to pay a return visit." Luo En said calmly, a hint of coldness flashing in his eyes.

Otto shook his head: "Young man, that's not a wise choice. That old woman is no ordinary person; there aren't many forces in Lizard Alley bigger than hers."

Luo En smiled slightly, took out his Potion Master badge from his bosom, and placed it on the table: "I'm no ordinary person either."

The Gray Dwarf's eyes widened instantly: "Professional Potion Master?"

His voice was full of surprise: "Last time you were only..."

"People always grow, don't they?" Luo En said calmly, "Now, how much do you know about that old hag?"

Otto hesitated for a moment, but finally shook his head:

"Even if your status is extraordinary now, this information is probably still a bit dangerous."

Luo En was not in a hurry; he slowly extended his hand, and a golden-red ring of light suddenly lit up in his palm—a small part of the Ring of Radiance's energy configuration was displayed in his palm.

"I think we can reach a mutually beneficial transaction."

Luo En's voice remained calm, but Otto keenly sensed the massive magic power between his palms.

It was feared that once released, everyone in this entire tavern would pay a terrible price of death or injury.

"I can give you ten magic stone fragments, plus a free identification service from me as a professional potion master. The potions you were just checking seem a bit hard to distinguish between true and false, right?"

This kid is really a lunatic!

The Gray Dwarf's expression became complex, surprise, greed, and fear intertwined.

Finally, he took a deep breath and nodded: "Deal."

Under the temptation of Luo En's identification and ten magic stone fragments, Otto detailed the intelligence on the old hag:

"Her name is Mola, nicknamed 'Old Spider,' and it is said she is proficient in all kinds of weird spells. She has a shop called 'Labyrinth Pawnshop' in the deepest part of Lizard Alley, where all kinds of strange items are collected."

Otto lowered his voice: "She has a group of Lizardman warriors and various other thugs under her command, and it is said she even keeps an Ogre Mage, a thing that even high-level apprentices dare not easily provoke."

"Why did she attack us?" Luo En asked directly.

"Old Spider never makes a first transaction with anyone." Otto explained:

"She always 'tests' visitors first to see if they are worth trading with. You were lucky to have escaped last time."

Leaving the Sunset Tavern, the two headed toward the depths of Lizard Alley.

Andre sneered: "Testing, that's just a nice excuse for robbery... If she wants to play this game again this time, I don't mind using dragon breath to properly entertain the thugs she hired."

The two walked deep along the narrow stone road, the surrounding stalls and shops gradually becoming sparse, and the smell in the air changed from the noisy market atmosphere to a gloomy dampness.

Just as they turned a corner, Luo En suddenly felt a mental fluctuation.

He immediately stopped and scanned the surroundings with his mental power.

"It's an ambush." He whispered, his wooden staff already prepared to turn back into an ironwood sword.

Andre nodded slightly, his golden vertical pupils shrinking into needle-like thin lines: "I smell... the scent of some kind of reptilian creature, possibly Lizardmen."

As soon as he finished speaking, several figures suddenly flashed out from the shadows in front, completely blocking the road.

They were eight burly Lizardman warriors, fully armed, holding scimitars and shields.

"Humans, hand over your magic stone fragments and valuables."

The leading Lizardman said in a hoarse voice, flicking his forked tongue: "Otherwise, be prepared to become our meal."

Luo En and Andre looked at each other, both seeing the determination in each other's eyes.