Chapter 902
The Palace of Tenochtitella and the Golden Potion
Chapter 902 The Palace of Tenochtitella and the Golden Potion
The three-legged golden bird on Locke's shoulder flapped its wings and took flight.
“You’re a very good wizard. Fighting alongside you reminds me of a time from the past.”
"You possess a high aptitude for gold magic. In this historically rich region, I think you should be able to see many remnants of the past that will not appear in the present."
"Welcome to our Meili Ancient Site."
"It's a pity you never witnessed the splendor of our border between light and darkness. The once immortal palaces are now all closed. If you could have come during its most glorious time, I could have taken you into the Palace of Tenochtitella to receive the blessing of golden magic."
“In the past, every guest invited to the Palace of Tenochtitella was given the Golden Elixir, a symbol of immortality.”
The three-legged golden bird suddenly disappeared and transformed into a golden force that headed towards the sun in the sky. Immediately afterwards, Locke saw that the sun's light was noticeably brighter.
The golden sun looked like molten gold at sunset.
Locke seemed to see a magnificent and immortal palace complex in that sun, but he couldn't tell whether it was an illusion or something he actually saw.
Locke looked at the sun in the sky with a puzzled expression.
“Is it just my imagination? No, the sun at the boundary between darkness and light is different from other places. I think it is very likely that it has been modified in some way. Perhaps there really was a palace complex in that sun, but it is now closed to everyone.”
The hidden power of that border area between darkness and light is rather frightening.
The five ancient city clusters of the Golden Dynasty at the border of darkness and light today may only be the tip of the iceberg of their past glory. The three most powerful city clusters that once represented the border of darkness and light may have already closed down and exist in areas inaccessible to ordinary wizards.
Locke quickly used the Water Hyacinth System to search for the Palace of Tenochtitella at the boundary between darkness and light, but found that he couldn't find any relevant information in the free magic book.
He did manage to find out about the Golden Elixir.
"The Three-Ring Potion, an incredible masterpiece created at the pinnacle of potion-making, is now permanently lost. Its specific effects are unknown. In the past, it was only possessed by those in the borderlands of light and shadow. It is said that taking it would grant one the blessing of golden magic."
Locke had a strange expression as he looked up at the sky where daylight and darkness met.
The guardian of the Merri Ruins, the three-legged golden bird, told himself that because of his talent for golden magic, he would see many phantoms of the past in this region. Perhaps that ancient city complex, located deep within the sun and incredibly majestic, was indeed real.
Perhaps it still exists now.
However, since no information can be found on the water hyacinth system in Yunze Wetland, it is very likely that the entrance has been closed.
The border between darkness and light is a region brimming with history and relics, a treasure trove for archaeologists and wizards.
At that moment, Barrett, holding the magic box, stepped on an earthworm that Locke had previously smashed into pieces and turned into a small earthworm with his wizard shoes. The earthworm was instantly crushed into pieces.
The fragments of flesh and blood, due to the residual golden magic within them, instantly transformed into even smaller earthworms, which quickly burrowed into the earth and disappeared without a trace.
Wizard Barrett said to Locke, "Team leader, I'm so sorry that I had to ask you to come in person. If you hadn't suddenly appeared, I probably wouldn't have even been able to get your entry to the competition. I'm sorry."
"Team leader, I've let you down."
Barrett bowed to Locke, a look of guilt on his face.
He felt very useless.
It's utterly foolish of him to be unable to perform this escort duty as a researcher at the True Knowledge Institute of Mount Golden Crown.
The two crystallization wizards behind him looked at Locke with fear, then bowed respectfully to him and thanked him.
"Thank you for your help, Grand Wizard. We are wizards from Neher University in the Spiral Basin."
"My mentor is Yennefer, the senior wizard mentor at Neher University."
“My mentor is Grand Wizard Callum Frost, the chief wizarding mentor at Neher University.”
The two men held Locke in high esteem; the moment Locke made his move had left a deep impression on them.
Locke did not respond to the three men, but instead looked at the magic box that one of the wizards was holding to his chest.
When the wizard saw Locke approaching, a smile mixed with awe immediately appeared on his face.
"Hello... Ah? My lord, this is an entry for my competition given to me by my mentor, the Archmage Yennefer. According to wizarding law, you cannot..."
The next moment, Locke forcibly used his magical pressure to unlock the magic box.
Suddenly, a golden apple rolled out of the magic box. It was a golden apple, the fruit of a mature golden apple tree, a magical plant. There were golden apple trees in Locke's Forest Sanctuary.
According to the three-legged golden bird, the earthworms were attracted by the golden apple.
The wizard was stunned, as if struck by a violent blow.
"How is this possible? My mentor gave me an entry for an competition. I watched her put a flying magical plant into this magic box with my own eyes. Why is there a golden apple inside? How is this possible?"
Locke said, "Golden apples are the earthworms' favorite food. That second-ring magical creature is targeting you because you are carrying golden apples."
The crystallizing wizard swallowed hard.
He is also a formal wizard, possessing the pride of a first-ring wizard and the bottom line of a super-individual.
At this moment, he gritted his teeth, his eyes revealing his incomprehension and even resentment towards the witch Yennefer.
His companion immediately moved away from him, looking at him with suspicion.
"In other words, Curtis Langley's death is related to you, and your mentor even wants to prevent our mentors' entries from being sent to the designated competition venue."
The wizard immediately said aggrievedly, "I am also in danger. If I had known about this plan, how could I, as a first-ring crystallization wizard, a proper wizard, possibly do such a suicidal mission that even a first-class wizard apprentice would not do?"
"And she even bought the boat tickets for us. The entire route was planned, from the time to the location, and even the people we would meet... everything was fixed."
Locke glanced at him.
Then I can be sure of one thing: Yennefer, my old friend, truly lives up to her name; after all these years, she hasn't changed at all.
However, she never expected that she would climb so fast and become a second-circle wizard and a senior wizarding instructor at the best wizarding university in the Spiral Basin.
This teacher promotion is very fast.
She was clearly not following the path she, Edgar, or Diana had taken.
However, she seems to be doing quite well on her chosen path, now better than Diana, though... it seems her methods are rather unsavory.
At this time, the Witcher forces of the Merry Ruins had already surrounded the area.
A ringed wizard emerged from the witcher squad, dressed in a golden wizard's robe.
"If you have anything to say, come to our Demon Hunter Division first."
"And the two wizards' magic boxes, may we inspect them?"
The Star Ring Wizard nodded to Locke.
"Thank you for your help, great wizard."
Locke said, "Hmm. Barrett, let them check."
After Barrett opened the box and underwent an inspection by the Witcher squad, Locke led him away from the wilderness to the competition venue.
On the way, Barrett, the wizard, carrying the magic box, asked Locke, "Team leader, are we just going to leave it at that?"
Locke said, "Yennefer has already paid the price; she'll probably be blacklisted by the Golden Cup. She's always been someone who acts without thinking ahead. For profit, she'll charge forward relentlessly, willing to pay any price."
"But I never thought about how to end it."
“But this time it’s not a conflict between me and her. She has already paid the price.”
Locke said, "But this time she's just a tool in someone else's hands. They hired her to sabotage my entry in the competition, and she might even steal the Great Roaring Dragon Sparrow."
"I don't know who hired her, but from the perspective of who benefits, and who is most motivated to lead this, it's probably the contestant who's going to use the magical plant crystallization technology in the competition. I don't know if anyone will participate in this competition with a flying magical plant created using this technology. But we'll find out tomorrow."
Locke and Barrett hired two magic carriages along the way and then traveled to the designated competition location at the Merri Ruins.
Locke found a wizard's inn to stay at. Along the way, he felt the number of gazes on him gradually decrease, and once he entered the city center of the Merri Ruins, all those gazes disappeared.
Soon, a group of wizards suddenly arrived at the wizard inn. They all seemed to want to get to know Locke. As soon as they came up, they introduced themselves to prove their worth.
They clearly wanted to befriend Locke.
On the second floor of the Wizard Inn, Barrett said to Locke, "Quite a few wizards have come to befriend us, especially a wizard from the Land of Dragonfall - the Holy Land of the Windbringers. He said he is Bruce, the Sun Ring Wizard."
"I would like to meet with you."
Barrett the wizard tentatively asked Locke, "Team leader, shall we meet with him?"
Locke closed his eyes and entered a state of deep meditation.
"not see."
"The competition is tomorrow. If I can win, my work will secure a commercial partnership with the Wind Chaser Holy Land. His approaching me at this time will not benefit me at all."
Let's handle this officially.
Barrett the wizard paused for a moment, then laughed.
"The team leader is still calm and composed."
"Then I'll just send them all away."
Soon, the wizard Barrett came down from the second floor and ran to the first floor to announce that Locke was busy and did not intend to associate with these wizards.
These wizards weren't angry. After all, they were just joining in the fun, hoping to gain some benefit, but they didn't really have much hope of befriending Locke.
Bruce Sun Ring Wizard, however, was turned away. He pursed his lips, wanting to stop the young crystallizing wizard and ask him some questions.
It's one thing to refuse those scoundrels.
He's a Sun Ring Wizard, a Sun Ring Wizard from the Holy Land of the Windbringers, a Sun Ring Wizard from the Land of Dragonfall!
Three ideas immediately popped into Bruce the wizard's mind.
'Has the other party never heard of the Land of Dragon's Fall?'
'Has the other party never heard of the Holy Land of the Wind Bearers?'
'Did the other party know that I wanted to establish a partnership with him before he even participated in the competition, bypassing the competition committee of the Golden Grail from the Golden Dynasty, which was located in the middle?'
As a Sun Ring Wizard from a top wizarding university whose predecessor was a shop alliance, he possessed a strong business gene. He instinctively wanted to protect the interests of his university, so he immediately thought that if there was no Golden Grail tournament committee acting as an intermediary, then cooperating with Locke would be more in his own interest no matter how you looked at it.
Therefore, the wizard Bruce's rosy idea was to sign another contract with another wizard on the Golden Grail, a contract that was merely a facade, but would meet the requirements of the White Wizarding Association of Dragonfall Lands regarding cooperation with the border between the Dark and Light.
Privately, he urged Locke to give up participating in the Gold Grail War and reached a private business partnership with him.
Although this might not be in Locke's interest, it would be entirely in the interest of the Windbringer's Sanctuary. Wizard Bruce believed that he could accomplish this with his own abilities.
He didn't think there was anything wrong with what he did.
His willingness to defend his business alliance at all costs is typical of a businessman.
But at this moment, he did not expect that Locke would treat him like one of the rabble of wizards around him.
why?
Wouldn't most people stand up immediately to greet him upon hearing his name?
The Moon Ring Witch secretary standing next to Bruce the Wizard smiled.
She suddenly stopped the wizard Barrett and said to him, "This crystallized wizard, we are the wizarding holy land of the Dragonfall Land—the Windbringer's Holy Land, one of the wizarding academies in wizarding civilization that can make the best flying machines."
"This is Mr. Bruce Sun Ring."
"He holds a prestigious position and controls countless commercial interests. Anyone who becomes his friend will never have to worry about money again. Becoming friends with Mr. Bruce will grant you access to the elite circle."
The wizard Barrett bowed to the two.
"Two great wizards, but my team leader said he's very busy today and everything has to be done officially."
The words "legitimate business" echoed like thunder in the minds of the Moon Ring Witch and Bruce Sun Ring.
The Moon Witch suddenly smiled.
Bruce the Wizard stood with his hands behind his back and said, "I know. Tell your boss he's got guts."
Bruce the wizard turned and left, and his secretary immediately followed.
The Moon Ring Witch said softly, "Teacher Bruce, I have rarely seen you give up so decisively."
“In the past, didn’t you always strive to achieve your goals? I remember once a genius alchemist from the Star Ring Wizard refused to see anyone. You took advantage of someone delivering materials to him, jumped onto their delivery truck, bypassed their defensive magic array, and infiltrated their home.”
"That's how we met the other person and convinced that genius to cooperate with us."
"Why did you give up so easily today?"
The Moon Witch said, "Is it because you think he's not very valuable? I think he's quite interesting."
With his hands behind his back, Wizard Bruce said, "As a business negotiation expert, I can accurately sense any opportunity. But the reason I gave it up was because there was no opportunity."
"The situation you described was that the other party was inherently weak-willed, so he tried to maintain his composure by not seeing me. At that time, I knew that as long as I could successfully see him, I could persuade him. He was like someone who was about to collapse, and if I put a straw on him, he might be overwhelmed."
“But this time is different. This person is determined. He won’t see me because he really has no interest in seeing me. If I were to approach him, it would only lower my value.”
Wizard Bruce took a few steps, then suddenly stopped and said to his secretary, "Go and investigate this man's background. I need all his past information. This man is definitely not a simple opponent. His wizarding level is low now, but I believe he will be a force to be reckoned with in the future."
"Of course, it's just a possibility right now."
The Moon Ring Witch looked at her leader in surprise.
She hadn't expected that this leader of the Sun Ring Wizards would think so highly of a wizard she had never met before.
In her eyes, he was just a somewhat interesting young second-ring wizard.
Perhaps they have some talent, which is why they dared to refuse such an opportunity, unaware that delay can lead to unforeseen changes.
If you don't seize something immediately, it might be taken away by someone else.
Knowing the principle that delay can lead to unforeseen changes, how could a normal person dare to refuse an opportunity when it comes?
However, the Moon Witch kept quiet, remembering that her leader and de facto teacher was a renowned business expert, and became even more interested in the wizard named Augustine.
……
The Sun Ring Wizard Director of the Golden Grail Tournament Committee, upon hearing from the wizards below that Bruce Wizard had visited Locke Augustine at the Wizard Inn but was instead turned away, was deeply disappointed.
The head of the Sun Ring Wizard was overjoyed.
The wizard asked curiously, "I don't know why Augustine would refuse to meet him. He's the vice-dean of the top wizarding university in Dragonfall Lands. Wouldn't meeting him be a sure way to rise through the ranks?"
The head of the Sun Ring Wizard was all smiles.
Since that wizard Bruce arrived at their border between the light and dark, he's always had a long face. If it weren't for the fact that he had a chance to make money, he wouldn't bother to curry favor with such a person.
Who would have thought that Locke Augustine from the Land of Three Swamps could actually make such a master suffer a setback?
This is truly gratifying.
The head wizard of the Sun Ring Wizards tapped his fingers on the table and said, "Then you're wrong. Who do you think gives you the opportunity to rise to the top? For a true genius, their own abilities are their greatest asset."
“Breeding geniuses like Locke Augustine are the kind of people the Windbreaker Holy Land should be eager to befriend. Not the other way around.”
"It would be unnecessary for him to go see Bruce."
……
At the boundary between day and night, the sun sets and rises.
The next day arrived quickly.
Locke led the wizard Barrett to the designated competition venue for the Golden Grail.
It was a vast sky, with many flying dragons whose bodies were wrapped in chains. These dragons dragged the chains, turning the sky into racetracks.
Meanwhile, on the tracks defined by these chains, there were some flying magical creatures, their bodies bound by chains and locked with magic locks.
Those magic locks all have countdown timers.
Clearly, the magic locks will unlock one by one over time, and they will then launch attacks on the contestants.
However, those were only first-level magical creatures.
Therefore, only crystallized wizards can participate as pilots in this competition. Of course, if a contestant wants a gasification wizard or liquefaction wizard to be a pilot, the competition committee will not refuse, and the referee will not penalize them. However, second-ring wizards cannot participate.
This is because only when the wizard's level is lower than the plant's level can the plant's performance be maximized, rather than relying on the wizard's own abilities.
At this moment, the wizard Barrett was wearing a wizard's robe and a Great Crying Dragon Sparrow on his back. Although the magic pressure of a first-ring wizard was not enough to drive a second-ring magical plant, Locke had already stored enough magic power inside this Great Crying Dragon Sparrow.
Therefore, only now can Wizard Barrett manipulate this Great Crying Dragon Sparrow.
The contestants and pilots, one by one, stood on the runway under the guidance of the staff.
At this moment, thousands of True Sight Crystals floated in mid-air, recording the entire flight competition.
Two hosts dressed in golden robes announced after a solemn ringing of golden bells: "I hereby declare the 347th Golden Holy Grail Flying Magic Plant Competition at the Boundary Between Darkness and Light open. Please take your positions, 32 contestants."
Locke sat in the stands and saw that Wizard Barrett was standing in position 7 of the takeoff lanes, while there were 28 wizards on the takeoff lanes, not 32.
The host announced, "Yesterday, four contestants voluntarily withdrew from the competition, including members of the Yunze Wetland Rose Council..."
Locke's eyes flickered as the host announced the names of the participating schools, wizarding lands, and entries. Of the four who withdrew from the competition, three were from other wizarding lands, mainly from the Mamluk Rift Valley and the Spiral Basin.
But there is another person from Yunze Wetland, who is a wizard from the Rose Council. Judging from the name of the magical plant, it must be the magical plant crystallization technology.
"It seems that the person who hired the black wizard to devise a plan to carry the golden apple in the wilderness and attract the earthworms among the golden worms is a wizard from the Rose Council."
Locke's eyes were cold.
"It shouldn't be the lineage of the Rose Throne, but rather the lineage that proposed the magic plant crystallization technology."
"It's not aimed at me, but rather to prevent powerful competitors from emerging. My Great Roaring Dragon Sparrow has been seen by many wizards in Group 2. So it's normal for the data to be leaked."
"So, the other party originally wanted to eliminate my entry to ensure that the magical plant crystallization technology would win. Then, they would use the Golden Grail and the Wind-Bearer's Sanctuary in the Land of Dragonfall to continuously leverage and increase the popularity of the magical plant crystallization technology."
"That's how the two entries from Spiral Basin withdrew from the competition. But this time, it wasn't just me who was targeted, but also the wizards from the Mamluk Rift Valley. Is it because that wizarding land also has a strong entry that might overshadow the flying magical plants created by the magical plant crystallization technology?"
Now that they have realized they cannot guarantee their work will not be eligible to participate, they have simply withdrawn from the competition.
Right.
Since we can't win the championship, we might as well not participate in the competition at all.
Locke frowned. If that magical plant crystallization technology was really that powerful, why would it need to be done in such a way?
(End of this chapter)