[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-wizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems":3,"chapter-wizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems-wizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems-chapter-24":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Wizard: Starting With Synthesized Gems",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1265094,1693,"Chapter 24: Formal Wizard","wizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems-chapter-24",24,"\u003Cp>Locke and Lorne exchanged a glance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke asked, “Respected Witch Barbara Vayne, what magic does the Bone Cult specialize in?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What benefits do we get by joining?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara Vayne replied, “The Bone Cult excels in necromancy, particularly the bone branch, the strongest in the southeast quadrant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We also specialize in the curse and head-dropping branches of necromancy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Join us, and you can do whatever you want: kill, burn, anything. The cult only requires a monthly blood sacrifice to our leader. Beyond that, we have no rules. Hahaha, tempted to join?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke was speechless. He wanted to become a wizard to study magic and seek truth, not join a cult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Killing and burning? He wasn’t a psychopath. Why would he need that kind of freedom?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke declined politely, “Lady Barbara, my primary affinity is wood element. I don’t align with the Bone Cult’s magic, so I’ll pass.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara’s face darkened. “You two are refusing a toast only to drink a forfeit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m a first-class wizard apprentice, while you’re mere third-class apprentices. You’re barely stronger than frail infants before me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Since you won’t come willingly, I’ll take you by force.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara pointed at Lorne’s magical item. With a flick, the silver glow on his silver cross sword faded rapidly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was swallowed by darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lorne exclaimed, “Why? How? My magical item lost its effect?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara laughed. “You’ve barely begun your magical journey. Some things are beyond your understanding. Your greatest asset is gone.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She turned to the Mandrake Vine on Locke’s right hand. “Young man, you’re on the wrong path.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your plant irritates me. I can see the dense death aura around your soul, perfect for necromancy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke’s heart sank. So he was the target, and Lorne was just caught up in it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a black wizard with high negative energy affinity, she could sense his own affinity for negative energy particles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was marked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many prospects with negative energy affinity on the ship were likely targeted by black wizard organizations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara raised her hand toward Locke’s Mandrake Vine. “Let me remove that eyesore.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Plant magic is nothing before necromancy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke’s heart raced. Vine Hand took him two years to master. If it was sealed like Lorne’s magical item, those years would be wasted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he had no idea how she’d sealed Lorne’s item.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a first-class wizard apprentice, her methods were beyond his comprehension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke was beginning to understand how deadly it was in the wizarding world to face techniques you couldn’t fathom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gap between wizards could be so vast that one couldn’t even grasp the other’s magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having just entered the wizarding world, facing a seasoned black wizard was overwhelming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Locke prepared to chant Vine Hand for a desperate stand, a heavy pressure crushed his chest. He and Lorne dropped to one knee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Barbara Vayne, seemingly invincible, knelt, grinding her teeth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thirty zombies surrounding them exploded into fragments instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara panicked. “Formal… formal wizard… This ship is led by a formal wizard.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A white wizard’s formal wizard is here…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A greater magical pressure surged from all directions, forcing Barbara to spit blood, nearly immobilizing her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, this radiation intensity, can a living being produce such magical pressure?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara quickly drank an unknown potion from her clothes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just her, many black wizards in the sky’s black mist were knocked into the sea by the terrifying pressure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All the plants on the deck swayed, as if welcoming someone’s arrival.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every zombie sprouted a red flower from its head, draining their vitality before wilting and bearing fruit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In moments, the zombie rain was dispelled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fruits fell to the deck, wilting rapidly. From their seeds, butterflies made of petals fluttered out, forming a cherry blossom sea that surged toward the black mist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke heard Mentor Jarvis exclaim joyfully, “It’s Lord Zeno Smith, a formal wizard from Four Seasons Garden, casting the Cherry Blossom Curse.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A wizard appeared between Barbara, Locke, and Lorne, wearing a robe embroidered with lilies and hyacinths, and a hat adorned with at least five types of flowers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Terrifying magical pressure radiated from him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zeno Smith’s gaze was indifferent, looking down at the kneeling Barbara Vayne. “Bone Cult child, you’ve grown fond of bad jokes lately.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All talk, no skill.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You say my life magic is inferior to your necromancy?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For the sake of your mentor’s recent experiment with me, leave now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Barbara’s face paled. She hadn’t expected a First Circle wizard from Four Seasons Garden on this ship.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without a word, she turned into a black mist and fled in disgrace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many wizards in the black mist retreated as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mentor Jarvis shouted, “Lord Zeno Smith, they’ve taken at least thirty percent of the apprentices. Should we pursue?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zeno Smith was unconcerned. “Thirty percent? Good.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s ten percent less than I expected.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let the black wizards go. If they get nothing, they’ll start wars elsewhere.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He glanced at Locke’s Mandrake Vine and vanished from the deck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mentor Jarvis hesitated but said nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He addressed the shaken prospects coldly, “Consider this your training.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Black and white wizards in the southeast quadrant often clash.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve now faced them early, so learn how to fight black wizards in the future.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the ordeal, Locke and Lorne sat on the deck to rest, catching their breath, still reeling from the life-or-death crisis.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long pause, they exchanged a smile. Lorne gave Locke a bear hug.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This crisis had deepened their bond.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lorne saw Locke as a reliable comrade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Holding his now-ineffective enchanted weapon, Lorne said, “That scared me. I thought I’d be forced to become a black wizard.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke looked at the sword. “But your magical item’s useless now. That’s a shame.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lorne shrugged. “Can’t help it. Life’s more important. Once we join a wizard organization, we’ll find a way to unseal it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke nodded. “I need to check on my friends, see if they’re still on the ship.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hoped Patty and Kode hadn’t been taken by the black wizards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lorne said, “I need to look too. I saw an apprentice from Schleswig get taken by those damn black wizards.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I feel bad for my friend.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s so unlucky.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke glanced at Lorne. He might pity his friend now, but if they met again, one as a black wizard and the other a white wizard, they’d be enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke searched the deck and soon found a shaken Patty and Kode.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lacking negative energy particle affinity, they hadn’t been targeted by the black wizards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locke comforted them, then stared at where the Four Seasons Garden formal wizard had vanished, lost in thought. After this crisis, his desire for greater magical power intensified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The figure who had subdued all the black wizards was etched in his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was this the power of a formal wizard?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted it too!\u003C\u002Fp>",1131,"2026-06-05T16:22:57.670Z",1,"novelbin.me","eaff7b96fc1d4292b0454ab65dbf1484f4604ea715af0a4760934ae1386b712a","wizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems-chapter-25","wizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems-chapter-23",578,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fwizard-starting-with-synthesized-gems-cover.jpg"]