Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 847 Why Did You Embark on the Path of Wizardry? A Night Meeting with a Wizard

In the evening, Locke left the tenth basement level of the 2nd Research Institute.

Once the framework is established, as long as resources, talent, and money are invested in it, the first step, and even the second step, of the 'Sword Tomb' of the finite element cultivation method can be completed sooner or later.

Next, it's just a matter of time. Once the first two steps are completed, you can immediately begin your atavistic evolution experiment.

But Locke couldn't say exactly when the work could be completed.

Because it depends on how much resources you continuously invest, and sometimes there is also a bit of luck involved. But no matter what, according to the framework you have designed, you can expect to see results in three to six months, and then you can move on to the final third step.

Locke was heading to the Witch's Kitchen to celebrate with Mason and the others that evening when he turned around and saw Douglas standing hesitantly on the tenth basement level, unwilling to leave.

Locke turned to Douglas and said, "Working so hard? Your previous article was quite good. Could you write another one for me, a review of the development of pure magic plant second-circle wizard shoes? Think about the draft first, and I'll give you the outline and experimental data tomorrow."

Douglas was on the verge of tears.

It wasn't that he genuinely loved his work; rather, he had finally managed to have a month of peace with Locke, but after that month of peace, the Brandy Wizard started occasionally entering the Dune Plane and trying to find him.

So now he doesn't dare to leave the tenth basement level of the Group 2 research institute, because the Sith wizards have assigned the tenth basement level to Locke as Locke's territory in Group 2.

Hiding here will make that brandy wizard somewhat wary.

King Lagmamon was also exasperated, saying in Douglas's mind, "That Brandy kid is just too persistent."

"But since you have Locke Augustine's protection, you can continue working for him. In your time, only hard work brings protection, doesn't it?"

'I really want to see what this kid's magical plant cultivation will eventually produce. Back in my day, there were some breeders as talented as him. It's just a pity that breeding technology back then was far inferior to what it is now.'

Wizard Douglas felt that something was not quite right.

"Teacher, I'm your student. I feel like you're not considering things from my perspective."

'I spend almost 24 hours a day in the lab now.'

Within his own mind, the Witch-King Lagma chuckled: 'Really? No. Otherwise, wouldn't you be under the watchful eye of the Brandy Wizard the moment you step outside the laboratory?'

Wizard Douglas closed the laboratory door and then sighed.

"That's true. Then I can only work harder. Fortunately, Grand Wizard Locke has been quite good to me."

……

On the basement floor of the research institute of Group 2, the Brandy Wizard looked grim. He glanced at the magical mechanical clock tower in the reception hall of the first-floor laboratory and checked the time.

"What's going on? Could it be that they're living in the lab?"

"This guy used to slack off all the time when he was with me, always looking for a chance to sneak out of the lab. But now that he's with Augustine, he's become so diligent. He's in his lab all day long."

Even the brandy wizard felt a pang of jealousy.

Could it be that Locke was more skilled at managing people than him?

"I didn't realize you were even better at exploiting people than I am."

The brandy wizard pondered, "If you don't come out, will it make any difference? If you don't leave the lab, I'll go to your lab on my own."

The Brandy Wizard prepared to register with the staff of Group 2 before taking the suspended elevator to the tenth underground floor.

To everyone's surprise, the staff member who worked as a vaporizer raised his head, bowed to him, and said, "I'm sorry, Brandy Wizard. The tenth floor of the underground laboratory in Group 2 has been closed to the public for twenty days."

The Brandy Wizard looked completely bewildered, then his face darkened as he said, "Why isn't it open to the public? How can a public research institute be closed to the public?!"

The vaporization wizard staff member immediately bowed, after all, he was just a temporary worker at Golden Crown Mountain.

“The Brandy Wizard. It’s like this, this was personally ordered by Sith Sun Ring Wizard Leader.”

"The main reason is that the tenth underground level is currently the sword tomb of the great wizard Locke, so in order to prevent outsiders from disturbing it, it is currently forbidden to enter."

The brandy wizard suddenly realized that he was the one who had been out of the loop.

His thoughts immediately began to wander.

'He's so close to the team leader here? They even set aside an entire floor in the research institute for him to have a private lab? What makes them so special?'

The brandy wizard immediately thought of many things.

Either he has a powerful background, or he has a deep-rooted business relationship with that Sith wizard. It's more likely to be the latter, since Locke Augustine is a wizard from out of town.

He probably doesn't have any connections in Yunze Wetland.

The Brandy Wizard's expression was not good. The repeated rejections made him somewhat annoyed, and he even wanted to force his way into the tenth underground level.

In any case, even if he did that, the gasification wizard in front of him couldn't stop him.

Any order without the backing of power is nothing but a piece of paper.

He could force his way in, take Douglas away, and then apologize to the Sith wizards, or even Locke Augustine, and find a plausible excuse.

If it only happens once or twice, as long as nothing serious happens, there shouldn't be any serious consequences.

The Brandy Wizard hesitated, however, because he doubted that the adventure in Douglas's possession might not be the same adventure left behind by the Sun Ring Wizard.

It could just be a serendipitous encounter left behind by a lunar or star ring, or even just a rather unusual encounter left behind by an ordinary second-ring wizard.

Such a fortuitous encounter was simply not worth the great risk he was taking.

Doing this kind of thing too often will damage his reputation.

He couldn't be as foolish as that Droma, ruining his reputation.

Therefore, everything needs to be measured.

The Brandy Wizard began to ponder, and he was also somewhat curious about what kind of sword tomb Locke Augustine, this rising star, could create.

"Generally, second-circle wizards use the Spirit Breath Cultivation Method to cultivate second-circle magical plants. He doesn't use the Spirit Breath Cultivation Method, but rather the Finite Element Cultivation Method, so he probably hasn't become a true second-circle breeder yet. In the Advanced Knowledge Academy, only Zeno has obtained a second-circle breeder certificate."

"But both Zhuoma and I have barely learned the Spirit Breath Breathing Technique; we just haven't reached the point where we passed the test."

The brandy wizard pondered, 'What is he cultivating in the sword mound?'

He felt the vibration of the Ganoderma lucidum plant. When he opened it, he found that it was a message from a friend of his, saying that a second-circle wizard from the True Knowledge Academy in their Golden Crown Mountain had recently entered the second-circle first district.

The brandy wizard immediately pressed for details about who it was.

He thought of many candidates, and even felt that the most likely one was Zeno.

After all, among the students of the Advanced Knowledge Academy, only Zeno obtained the Second Ring Breeder Certificate Badge.

His friend quickly replied to him.

"It's Locke Augustine, I think he entered the Institute of Truth last year. He's quite promising at such a young age. Brandy, how about we find an opportunity to invite him to the Witch's Kitchen for a meal and make his acquaintance?"

The brandy wizard was struck dumb.

He didn't even bother with the gasification wizard temporary worker's argument at the second research institute. He immediately turned around, left the second research institute, boarded the flying vehicle, and headed towards the public plane gate of the Dune Plane.

Inside the small aircraft, Brandy looked on incredulously.

"Him? Him?"

"He just became a second-circle wizard, and he's not even a second-circle breeder yet, and he doesn't know the Spirit Breath Cultivation Method, but in his first year as a second-circle wizard, he published an article in the first section of a second-circle journal?"

In an instant, the Brandy Wizard felt that there was definitely something fishy going on behind the scenes.

But the brandy wizard quickly dismissed the idea.

Because Locke is a wizard from out of town with a simple background, while that is a first-district journal among second-circle journals. How powerful must one's background be to operate in the shadows at the journal level?

If Locke had that kind of connection and influence, he wouldn't need to compete with Locke next year; he could simply grovel before him and latch onto his coattails.

The brandy wizard asked his friend, "Which journal?"

His friend replied on the Water Hyacinth system: '《The Boundary of All Things》. The submission was to the Breeding section of 《The Boundary of All Things》.'

The Brandy Wizard paused for a moment, then thought about it carefully, because the boundary of all things was not within the scope of submissions from mainstream breeders in Yunze Wetland.

However, after careful consideration, he discovered that "The Boundary of All Things" was a mid-level second-tier journal.

This means that it's not even a barely first-tier journal.

It is a legitimate, long-established journal published in the Second Ring Road, First District.

The brandy wizard was shocked.

"Damn it, how did he do that? He doesn't even know the Spirit Breath Cultivation Method. This is unfair."

"How could an ordinary second-circle wizard, who had just become a second-circle wizard, publish a first-circle article immediately without knowing the Spirit Breath Cultivation Method?"

In an instant, the Brandy Wizard felt a sense of crisis and apprehension towards Locke.

He had previously planned to force his way in and take Douglas away, but after hearing that Locke had published a second-tier journal article, he felt as if he were being suppressed by his bloodline.

It's like a mouse meeting a cat.

At this moment, when he thought of Locke's image, he found his mind blank, with only Locke's article about the Second Ring Road and the First District remaining.

He published an article about the Second Ring Road, Zone 1...

All his courage vanished in an instant.

The Brandy Wizard, piloting the aircraft, gritted his teeth and said, "Damn Douglas, he's using Locke's name to avoid me."

The brandy wizard sighed.

"Forget it, he can't work in the lab forever. The magical pressure and radiation in the lab are so severe, and besides, it's a sword tomb. Even a crystallization wizard can't stay in there for long. He'll come out eventually."

"I'll just wait patiently."

"After all, he's someone who published in the Second Ring, First District journal. I can't afford to offend him. It seems he'll be a formidable opponent for me next year." The Brandy Wizard thought, "Currently, among the people in the Advanced Institute of Truth, the only ones who have published in the Second Ring, First District journal are Zeno and Antoine from the Senate faction. Zhuoma and I haven't even published in the Second Ring, Second District journal."

“Antoine must have gotten in through connections, and Zeno is our biggest threat.”

He initially gathered all the second-circle wizards of the True Knowledge Institute into a group to gather information about these competitors, and also because they had a tacit understanding to unite and target the most powerful Zeno.

Of course, this kind of grouping up is not about forming cliques, that kind of pointless thing.

Instead, they initiated transactions and shared resources and information within the group. Zeno, however, was arrogant and, although he joined the group, he never interacted much within it.

Therefore, this is actually a group that can rebalance the situation.

But now, the brandy wizard felt a chill.

Because a second second-circle wizard from the True Knowledge Academy has been released, reaching the second-circle first district.

Brandy Wizard looked into the group chat and, sure enough, saw that Jon Quess Wizard had posted the news there.

Jon Quite sent a smiley face emoji.

"Look everyone, our Jinmianshan Zhenzhi Institute has a second senior researcher who has published a paper in a journal ranked in the second ring and first zone."

'I feel incredibly honored.'

At this moment, the sorceress Zhuoma sent a surprised emoji, followed by a sentence.

"Incredible! In his first year as a second-ring wizard, he published an article in a second-ring journal's first-tier section. How are the rest of us supposed to survive?"

The other two wizards, after sending shocked emojis, also posted some words that seemed to encapsulate profound insights into life—

'This is incredible. The people who come into our True Knowledge Institute get more and more freakish every year.'

"Keep trying. I just hope I can publish a good paper next year and get the top-tier grant directly. Otherwise, if we have to wait another two or three years, and others have developed their skills and have enough experimental data to apply for top-tier grants, what chance will there be for us?"

Zeno's message appeared in the group, a rare occurrence.

"I regularly subscribe to 'World Affairs' magazine. I've read that article; the concept is very clever, but getting it published in a journal of 'World Affairs' caliber definitely involved taking a shortcut. Of course, it's still very impressive."

Only those with sufficient strength can find this shortcut.

There was a pause in group messaging for a while.

Immediately afterward, the two ordinary second-ring wizards sent a message: 'This is rare. Even someone as popular as Zeno, who's a favorite of your teacher, has come out. Looks like you were quite surprised by this news too.'

Haha... Even geniuses feel pressure.

'We won't give up on next year's top-tier grant application.'

The Brandy Wizard seized the opportunity to send a message: "I suggest we organize another wizard's night meeting within the group. We can share the resources and information we have, discuss intelligence regarding the special grant fund, and revisit past tips and tricks. What do you think?"

"Zeno, are you coming?"

Zeno did not answer.

But both wizards in the group sent messages.

"Okay, I'll participate. To be honest, I'm a little panicked right now. I definitely need to talk to my colleagues."

"Yes, I'll participate too."

The sorceress Zhuoma sent a message.

"Then I'll participate too."

Jon Quess said, “I’ll definitely go. Or should anyone invite Augustine? And Antoine too. Didn’t he recently say he’s going to apply for a special grant next year? More people means more information.”

These words were exactly what the brandy wizard wanted to hear.

The Brandy Wizard said, "I can try to contact Wizard Antoine."

Using this wizarding gathering, he could artificially create a resource for himself and then use it to win over Antoine, trying to establish a relationship with wizards like Antoine who had resources and background.

The wizard Zhuoma said, "Then I'll go and contact wizard Locke."

At the other end of the water hyacinth system, the wizard Zhuoma was also thinking about Locke's wizard shoes. He purchased the Bloodwave Pineapple Wizard Shoes, and they turned out to be quite good, excellent value for money.

The witch Droma thought to herself, "We can take this opportunity to bring Locke into our group."

"It can also help me get closer to him. It's a win-win-win situation."

……

Meanwhile, in the Witch's Kitchen, Locke also received a thank-you message from his senior brother, Sun Ring.

It seems he was using his original body in the Dark World to send himself the message. It can only be said that the communication system composed of those water hyacinths floating on Cloud Lake is really too powerful, actually able to send messages to himself across the Dark World.

My senior colleague from the Japanese journal congratulated me, saying, "Congratulations, junior brother, you've published your first paper in a second-tier journal. I've heard from my friends that I didn't have such academic achievements at your age."

Locke glanced at the Water Hyacinth System and saw congratulatory messages from the Celtic Team Leader, the Sith Team Leader, his senior brothers and sisters, and his friends.

Locke replied to each of them, thanking them for their congratulations.

The Preston Witch sent herself a message after congratulating her.

"Young Locke, now you can relax for a while. After all, you just published a paper in a Q1 journal."

'It's time to take a break. By the way, I recently became a second-circle wizard and am considering organizing a planar exploration team for a mission.'

Locke was stunned for a moment. Not only had he not stopped to rest, but it seemed that he had immediately started preparing for the Golden Cup.

Moreover, I've recently been thinking about how to develop a second set of second-ring wizard shoes.

Locke replied to the Preston Witch: 'Good luck, Preston Witch.'

At that moment, Locke looked up and saw Mason Witch, Freya Witch, and Barrett Wizard, who raised their glasses and said to Locke, "Congratulations, team leader."

Locke nodded slightly, clinked glasses with them over a glass of wizard's wine, and then drank it down in one gulp.

After Freya finished drinking the wizard's wine, a blush appeared on her delicate face.

"Peach Blossom Wine is so easy to get drunk on. This time, the three of us are treating. Team leader, it's been a year since we started working with you. You are indeed a great leader. With you, the three of us have achieved what we couldn't in the previous three years combined."

Mason Witch nodded.

“Before, the three of us thought it was just luck to get a second-class project grant, it was just our expectation. But with the team leader, we can now even get a first-class project grant.”

Wizard Barrett said, "So this meal should be our treat to you, group leader."

"We know our own abilities. It is because of your guidance that we have grown to this point. Meeting you is the luck of all three of us."

Locke glanced at them with surprise.

"Isn't it my good fortune to have met such responsible and ambitious colleagues like you? It's been a year since we met, and I'm so glad to have gotten to know you all."

Locke raised his glass and downed the wizard's wine, the kind that could intoxicate even crystallizing wizards, in one gulp.

He discovered that, without using any powerful magic, he actually felt slightly drunk after drinking it.

This 5,000-yuan pot of Peach Blossom Wine truly lives up to its reputation.

Locke said, “Now we have a new beginning. In the new year, you will complete your first-class grant projects, while I will receive a special grant project.”

The four exchanged glances, then, immersed in the pleasant atmosphere, began vying for the pot of peach blossom wine on the table.

Soon, Barrett and Freya the witch both became drunk.

Mason Witch, on the other hand, was half-drunk. She propped her chin up and looked at Locke, saying, "Team Leader, there's a question I've wanted to ask you for a long time."

Locke was not drunk at all. He sat upright at the table, poured himself a cup of the complimentary wizard tea, and said, "You can speak, but I may not answer."

Mason the Witch said, "Team leader, why did you become a witch? Barrett the Witch wanted to gain great power, Freya the Witch wanted to gain eternal youth. As for me, I want to become a more perfect person."

"Just like Professor Ekaterina, a perfect person."

"And what about you, team leader?"

Locke pondered for a moment; the question wasn't hard to guess.

"Just an interest."

Mason Witch was taken aback by the answer.

"Interest? Is it really possible that someone would want to become a wizard because of an interest? It sounds as fantastical as doing something for an ideal. But if it's a group leader, then there must be a good reason."

"After all, you and we are wizards of different levels."

Mason Witch got drunk and collapsed onto the dining table, falling asleep immediately.

Locke watched as his three friends in this wizarding world passed out drunk in front of him. He shook his head slightly. Although he could use the Reverse Refining Technique to immediately sober them up, wouldn't that mean that the five thousand-yuan pot of Peach Blossom Wine they had just drunk would have been wasted?

Therefore, Locke did not sober them up.

"Never forget our original aspiration..."

Locke sat upright at his dining table, pouring himself tea.

"Only by staying true to our original aspirations can we see things through to the end."

"Many people, in their pursuit of truth, have become alienated from themselves, thus forgetting why they embarked on this path in the first place."

Locke looked at the Water Hyacinth system; someone was contacting him. Locke looked closely and frowned.

Southern Witch Capital – "Southern Gold"?
I probably don't have any connection with them.

Wait, does the Southern Witch Capital also conduct research on golden magic?

　Please vote for me during the double reward period!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)