Chapter 36: Staggering Profit

  High above in the sky, the scorching heat of the sun bore down upon a vast open field, the sweltering waves emanating from the dirt increasing the overall temperature. Atop this field were 15 people, moving in three groups of five. Each group was huddled together, forming a defensive formation.

  In the groups, every individual had a different role: Immediate defense, rapid attack, full protection, heavy damage, and overall support. Each role had its own duties, allowing for the squadron to react to sudden changes and retaliate in kind.

  The three groups were facing each other in a three-way battle, the dazzling lights of spells flashing as they soared through the air. Colorful barriers surrounded each squad, preventing the attacks from getting through.

  “That’s enough! You may stop the combat simulation! That’s good, you did well today.” A strong and confident voice rang out from above. Alan floated down from the sky, landing between the three squadrons. The multiple barriers surrounding each group slowly dissipated, revealing the apprentices standing within. They were the students of Combat Class Alan.

  Alan faced the group on the left and admonished them in a strict and harsh tone. “Group One. Your coordination was sloppy. At the beginning, you focused too much on offense and ended up taking some damage to your protective artifact. The support needs to respond to changes in the situation and assist the defenders when necessary.”

  Alan then turned to the group on the right and said, “Group Two. You did well at the start, defending against the onslaught of Group One and managing to strike back. However, you became overconfident in the strength of your barriers and focused too much on attacking. A single powerful piercing spell managed to break through at once and also damaged your artifact, though it sustained less damage than the first group’s.”

  Alan finally faced the group in between, and his trademark smirk appeared on his face. “Good job, Group Three. You maintained your balance and focus throughout the exercise. Each member did not stray from their roles even once, perfectly accomplishing their specific tasks. You didn’t take a single bit of damage to your artifact, and even managed to pierce through Group Two’s barriers with that rotating Ice Spear.”

  Alan then addressed the entire class and said, “That’s it for today. Think about what you did wrong and right, and in two weeks, we will be doing it again in different groupings. The group leaders should hand me the protective artifacts before leaving. The rest of you are dismissed.”

  The members of the two groups that had been admonished by Alan walked away dispirited, while Damon’s group members all cheered and strutted away with their chests puffed out. Dylan was one of these members, finally being able to hold his head high, surrounded by people he called friends.

  Damon approached Alan, alongside Samantha and Kelvin. They had been selected as the group leaders for this lesson. In his hand were five small metallic badges. These were the protective artifacts that Alan had been talking about. It protected the holder up to a certain level of damage, which could be tracked accurately. These were used in tournament-style matches to determine victory or defeat.

  Samantha and Kelvin both handed in their group’s artifacts. When Damon walked up to Alan, he said, “Was that Ice Spear from you, Damon? That was a very nice demonstration of elemental manipulation. The rapid rotation increased the penetrative power by at least two-fold. I’m impressed.”

  “Thank you, Senior Apprentice Alan. I recently switched my cultivation arts to a water elemental method from a fire elemental art, so I have been practicing frequently with the water and ice elements.” Damon responded modestly.

  “Oh, you switched to a water elemental method? Why is that?” Alan asked in honest curiosity.

  Damon pondered how to respond for a few seconds. A large reason behind his decision was the compatibility with his mind path, but he could not explain this to Alan. “My initial cultivation art was only a first-tier method. I needed to exchange it for a second-tier method eventually, so I scoured through the Legacy Hall and managed to find this. However, my combat style favors versatility and flexibility, so the water element is a better fit for me.”

  “I see… Anyway, good job today. I can see your cultivation is progressing quite smoothly. With the combat abilities you’ve displayed in my class, I would say you might even be able to contend with the average late stage Initiates. It’s a pity you aren’t majoring in combat; otherwise, you would be able to learn much more.” Alan shook his head and then smirked at Damon.

  Damon responded with a slight bow. Alan smirked at him for a while longer before turning around and flying away after casting a flight spell. Damon then turned around to get back to his dorm to craft some more scrolls when he was stopped by Samantha and Kelvin, who had been waiting near the area.

  “Damon. Stop for a bit. We have something to tell you.” Kelvin called out, causing Damon to turn around and face them.

  Kelvin had never caused any trouble, and Samantha was behaving quite civilly since her defeat at Damon’s hands. Damon did not feel too much animosity toward Samantha. She was just an arrogant bully, not a malicious enemy.

  “Thomas Blight wants to meet with you tomorrow. He asked me to relay the message to you. The location will be at the Academy arena,” Kelvin said straightforwardly.

  “Thomas Blight? Who’s that?” Damon asked back with a confused expression.

  Both Samantha and Kelvin looked momentarily flabbergasted before staring at Damon as though he were a unique creature they didn’t know existed.

  “You… What do you do with your time? Why don’t you know anyone at this Academy? You’ve already been here for over half a year!” Samantha blurted out.

  “I just cultivate. Isn’t that why we joined the Academy? I don’t have time to focus on all these sociopolitical dramas. Anyway, why should I meet this Thomas Blight? I already have a busy enough schedule as it is.” Damon responded halfheartedly. He wanted to go back and begin his crafting as soon as possible.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “Thomas Blight is the great-grandson of one of the three Wardens of the Assembly! If he tells you to come, you go to him! How dare you disregard him?” Samantha yelled, her face starting to turn darker.

  “Sam, stop. Thomas told me to tell you that he would make it worth your while if you come. If you’re not interested, you don’t need to. Let’s go.” After saying this, Kelvin departed, dragging Samantha away by the arm while she glowered at Damon.

  “What does he want from me, I wonder?” Damon was actually quite curious about Thomas Blight. It wouldn’t hurt to go and see what he wants. Maybe I’ll get something good if his words are trustworthy.

  Damon pondered as he held his hands behind his back and leisurely walked back to his dorm room.

  In the all too familiar dorm room, two figures sat across from each other. Damon sat atop his bed, facing Dylan, who was seated on the chair.

  “Older Brother Damon, here are the week’s profits in this storage pouch, subtracting my cut and the cost of new materials. In this second pouch, there are 200 sets of first-tier inscription materials, along with 20 sets of second-tier materials and a second-tier quill artifact. Are you sure you can begin inscribing second-tier scrolls already, Older Brother?” Dylan asked worriedly as he handed over the two storage pouches.

  Though he was mainly worried, Dylan’s gaze was also slightly inquisitive. At the beginning, he was shocked to see the number of scrolls he received from Damon to sell. He had initially thought it was the accumulation of several weeks or months; however, Damon always produced around 60 scrolls every week. In fact, this number steadily rose over time. Now Damon was even planning on trying his hand at second-tier scrolls? It made no sense, but he did not question it.

  “Do not fret, Dylan. I know what I am doing. I’m quite satisfied with how you’ve handled your business. To form trade relations with 10 different merchant groups, I am surprised you managed to get so many. Some of them even pay slightly more stones for a bulk purchase.” Damon responded with a joyous smile. His business was going incredibly well. They had made a profit of over 1,250 essence stones in the past two months. Split between the two of them, Damon had earned more than 750 stones, and Dylan had earned over 500. They were able to frequently eat first-tier dishes to strengthen their bodies at the Mess Hall, and they were able to purchase additional cultivation resources to boost their arcane power.

  “Didn’t you say you owed a friend of yours a debt of over 1,000 essence stones, Older Brother?” Dylan asked, curious as to how Damon had the abundance to splurge on second-tier materials.

  “Brother Igor has departed on a long-distance mission and will not return for another year or so. It is better for me to use these stones to earn even more, rather than put them aside for repayment. Cease worrying about the second-tier materials I purchased. I have just bought several vials of Arcane Development Potions from the Pavilion. They should help me advance to the peak of early stage, or even straight into the mid stage,” Damon replied, a hint of anticipation shining bright in his dark blue eyes.

  “Wow, congratulations in advance, Older Brother! I am finally approaching the peak of early stage as well now!” Dylan clapped in delight at Damon’s news and then excitedly started describing his own recent experiences.

  “My progress stalled for a while after changing to the cultivation art you gifted me, but I have already caught up! Thank you so much, Older Brother. Not only have you given me a method to earn cultivation resources, you even gave me such a great manual…” Dylan suddenly began to tear up, even though a large grin remained on his face.

  Damon stood up and walked over to Dylan and patted the top of his head a few times and said, “Don’t mind it, Dylan. We’re walking the path of cultivation together. We will break through into the higher realms, step by step, and eventually we will reach the peak! There is no need to make cultivation into a lonely and solitary journey. Isn’t it much better to tread on the road to the heavens with people you can trust and whose company you enjoy?”

  Dylan looked up at Damon with a tearful smile. “Yes, Older Brother Damon. You are right. I’ll follow you, wherever you go!”

  The next morning, Damon performed his daily cultivation exercises as the first rays of the rising sun began to paint the dark sky. By the time he finished, the battle between night and day had already finished, with daylight being the victor once more.

  Damon cast a Cleanse spell on himself to rid the sweat that had formed during his mind spike tempering session. It still caused excruciating pain, even though he had been experiencing it for several years now. However, the pain no longer even caused his expression to change. His willpower had grown considerably.

  Damon changed into the Academy robes and then stepped out of his dorm. Once again, Claire was waiting for him in the hall. However, today she was not jumping around in excitement at seeing him. Today, she was leaning against the open windowsill as she hugged her own body and gazed outside at the final few blossoms falling from some nearby trees. Her expression was one of longing and reminiscence. Her eyes were glazed and watery, her little nose slightly red, and her lips curved up ever so slightly in a sad smile.

  Damon stared at her expression, each little detail burning itself into his mind. The small smile, the longing gaze, her loose blonde hair fluttering gently in the warm breeze. He had never seen Claire make such an expression. He had not known she COULD make such an expression. His chest ached from the sight.

  At this moment, Claire came back to herself as she noticed Damon standing behind her. She blinked her eyes a few times before a large grin appeared on her face. She looked like the exact same Claire as always.

  “Hey Damon, how’s it going? What are you up to today? I was hoping to be distrac… No, I was hoping to hang out with you today. Just for today. What do you think?” Claire asked gently.

  Damon felt a strange sensation as he heard her words. Claire looked slightly nervous and insecure today, which was completely unlike her usual self. What was going on? He didn’t know; however, he felt he should not turn her down. Not today.

  “I don’t have too much planned today. I was called to the arena by this Thomas Blight person to meet. I assume he wants to exchange pointers for some reason, yet, I do not know why. Did you want to come with me?” Damon offered first this time.

  “Yes! I’ll go with you! Thomas Blight, huh? That guy tries to act all mysterious and all-knowing, but he’s just an idiot who doesn’t know anything. But he’s not a bad guy. Out of all the ‘prestigious sons’ in the Academy, he is one of the better ones. He probably just wants to test your strength. Whatever, we’ll find out when we get there. Let’s go!”

  Claire lit up in happiness when Damon offered for her to join him. When she finished speaking, she pointed toward the stairwell leading to the exit. Damon’s pupils constricted as he recognized what this gesture meant. It meant he was going to be doing some physical exercise today.

  Damon arrived at the arena and doubled over, gasping for breath. He had been slacking off in the recent months in terms of bodily training and exercise. It had reduced his physical endurance and caused him to struggle to keep up with Claire. She was already standing atop the central platform, performing what looked like a ritual. However, she was actually just practicing her combat abilities without using any spells.

  Damon managed to catch his breath after several minutes and looked around. He spotted a group of people standing around one seated figure. In that group were both Samantha and Kelvin. The seated man stood up and walked over to Damon. Claire also saw them approach and leaped off the platform and flipped through the air before landing gracefully beside Damon as support.

  The two groups stood several feet apart, appearing as though they were about to face off in a battle. Suddenly, the man at the forefront spoke.

  “Damon Fletcher. You have a lot of potential. I am interested in you. Won’t you become mine?”

  [Follow] to keep up to date with the latest chapters!