By the time Dago arrived at the Wizard Hall, it was already dark, and the outer ring of the Wizard Hall shimmered with a faint glow from its runic protective shield.
The nearby houses were filled with civilians who had moved from the Town area, living there for free; otherwise, if these surviving residents were converted into blood slaves, the Academy would face a huge headache.
Most of the people coming and going from the Wizard Hall were Academy Wizards from the mountain-top academy, as the casualties among hired wizards were already quite high.
Furthermore, the rewards recently issued by the Academy were truly immense, even the scholarly wizards from the Old Dwelling Peak had begun to become active.
However, their combat strength worried Dago greatly; he wondered if these old scholars could actually fight.
He arrived at the entrance of the Wizard Hall, showed his Academy emblem on his neck to the wizard guarding the door, and then entered the Wizard Hall.
Currently, a large area within the Wizard Hall was designated as a casualty treatment zone, containing several huge temporary tents where the Academy's healing wizards cared for the wounded, and the cries of the injured could be heard from time to time.
Dago went to the counter in the Wizard Hall specifically for exchanging mission rewards, and it was still the same curly-haired young man from last time; it seemed the Academy thought he was too idle and made him take on this counter as a part-time job.
“Hello, I'm here to exchange mission rewards,” Dago said to him with a smile.
“Hello, sir, you just need to show proof of the Black Robe Wizard you killed,” the curly-haired young man instinctively stood up from his chair and answered Dago respectfully.
“Wandering Wizard Dago, and you?” Dago said to the curly-haired young man while raising his hand to place items on the counter.
Instantly, three bone staves and three Dark Blood Council emblem pendants appeared on the desktop.
After seeing the items on the desktop, the curly-haired young man immediately became solemn with respect, looking at Dago, who was only two years older than him, with admiration.
“Academy Level 2 Apprentice Wizard Yuedun, esteemed Sir Dago.” Yuedun picked up the three emblems on the desktop, observed them carefully several times, and then picked up the bone staves for a look.
“Sir Dago, the emblems are fine; three can be exchanged for nine Mental Potions, and the Academy's purchase price for each bone staff is one mid-level magic stone.”
Dago nodded, “Alright, Yuedun, please help me exchange them.”
After hearing Dago's words, Yuedun took the six items and placed them in the cabinet behind him, then retrieved three mid-level magic stones and nine light purple Mental Potions from the safe, placing them on the desktop.
Dago put the magic stones and Mental Potions from the desktop into his storage ring, then smiled at Yuedun and said, “Thank you, Yuedun.”
He then waved at him, stood up, left the counter, exited the Wizard Hall, and had a casual dinner nearby.
He walked to the Wizard Inn, greeted the old man at the front desk, and returned to his room.
He had a busy night ahead of him; nine Mental Potions lay in his storage ring. He took out one, shook it, and the light purple liquid shimmered faintly under the kerosene lamp.
“It doesn't look like high quality, which is typical of the Academy,” Dago said, a bit speechless.
He pulled out the Mental Potion's stopper, poured it into his mouth, and began his arduous cultivation.
.........
The morning light was a hazy white, pressing the old tree in the courtyard into a faint ink painting; the snow piled on its branches rustled down, falling onto the frozen, hard ground with little sound.
Dago had consumed all nine low-level Mental Potions last night, even though the effect of the potions diminished towards the end.
However, the final gains were unprecedentedly huge.
His mental strength cultivation had already reached one-third of a Half-step Formal Witches.
The greatest improvement in his combat power was his ultimate trump card, The Pinnacle of Art, the Flame Core Air Bullet, whose power inherently depended on the degree of mental compression of air.
Now that his mental power had surged, if he unleashed it with full force, the range of compressed air would be larger, the compression force stronger, and the compression speed faster, resulting in an all-around enhancement of the Flame Core Air Bullet.
The power of the Flame Core itself surged, creating an overwhelming force like toppling mountains and overturning seas upon activation.
Its destructive power was probably no less than the fireball that the airship launched against the Dark Blood Council's Formal Wizard that night.
The only difference was perhaps that if he were to unleash the Flame Core Air Bullet now, his own mental power would be completely exhausted, while the airship's giant light ball might still have residual power after firing.
But no matter what, Dago now possessed a trump card comparable to the strike of a Formal Wizard-level expert; even if he couldn't escape, dragging a Formal Wizard down with him would suffice.
“I can only say, as expected of a potion-chugging wizard, truly abnormal,” Dago thought to himself.
He stretched, then got up to check out the Wizard Hall.
Aynak Town, Wizard Hall.
Inside the hall, the energy flowed through the runic array on the marble walls, driving away the cold air that poured in through the main entrance.
Dago walked up to the second floor of the hall, where there was a Wizard Bar exclusively for wizards to rest. There weren't many people in the bar; most were Academy Wizards resting, relaxing, and passing the boring time.
He ordered a glass of juice at the bar, found an empty corner, and quietly listened to the wizards' chatter in the bar.
Ever since Serena left, Dago, alone, would often come here to sit after his arduous cultivation.
One reason was to relax, and the other was that this pub had many Academy Wizards, and he could often hear useful information.
At a small round table two or three meters from Dago, three Academy Wizards were praying in low voices, their expressions solemn, with a faint sadness flowing between their brows.
This was likely a memorial for comrades who died in action; since Academy Wizards began going to the battlefield, similar scenes were not uncommon.
Dago slowly sipped the juice in his glass, observing the wizards in the bar, and from time to time, he would go up and ask about knowledge he didn't understand.
“Bang!”
Suddenly, the sound of a glass heavily hitting the table attracted the attention of everyone in the bar, who all watched with a gossipy mindset.
“Stop talking, Mother, I can't possibly give up this opportunity to become a Formal Wizard's disciple; I've waited five whole years for this chance.”
A tall, thin young wizard stood up from a table, angrily shouting at the person in front of him, then flung his hand and left the bar.
An old female wizard at his table kept calling his name, but she couldn't make him stop.
Seeing his figure disappear at the pub's entrance, the old female wizard covered her face and began to cry.
A male wizard next to her, who appeared to be her husband, continuously comforted her.
“Don't be sad, he has his own choices, and we should respect him.”
“How could the task of becoming a Formal Wizard's disciple be so simple? I'm afraid he might never come back.”
The male wizard sighed and continued, “Alas, who told me I'm not a Formal Wizard, just a Half-step Formal Witches? I can't give him what he wants, so let him go.”
The wizards in the bar scoffed and turned their eyes away from the spectacle, but Dago watched with great interest.
Then Dago continued to drink his juice, chew on dry rations, and eavesdrop on some irrelevant information.
“I heard that the Dark Blood Council has established quite a few blood pool strongholds north of the city. The Academy will offer huge rewards for conquering those strongholds, including aura potions, and even the chance to become a Formal Wizard's disciple.”
“Really? Such good rewards make me a little tempted.”
“Don't be silly, these strongholds are guarded by at least Half-step Formal Witches-level experts. If you go, you're just looking for death.”
“Then I can still think about it, right? Could that young man have taken on such a mission? What a pity, so young, yet so ignorant of the world.”
Two Academy Wizards next door were whispering.
Dago heard them clearly and became somewhat interested, interjecting, “Brothers, does that mission offer aura potions?”
The two of them, seeing a strange wizard, were startled. They composed themselves and questioned, “Who are you? What do you want?”
“I'm very interested in the mission you just mentioned. Could you tell me more about it? I'll pay for both your drinks,” Dago said with a smile.
“That's more like it. Blood pools are where the Dark Blood Council converts blood slaves and where their members worship their lord. They are usually guarded by many Black Robe Wizards. I advise you not to seek death.”
“Where does one usually accept such missions?” Dago asked curiously.
“For these kinds of missions, you have to go to the counter downstairs and sign an agreement, a life-and-death agreement.”
“Alright, thank you. I wish you both a pleasant day.” Dago nodded, raised his glass, and took a sip of juice towards the two of them.
The two scoffed and turned back to their drinks.
Dago smiled, asked the bar for the total, and after getting a number, casually threw down a low-level magic stone to pay, then left the bar.