Chapter 84: A Friend Visits

Chapter 84: Chapter 84: A Friend Visits

But changing even more drastically than the Golden Crow was Surtr.

It truly lived up to the Magma Giant Bloodline. It grew visibly by the day, its size already catching up to Chen Shang. Furthermore, it was entirely foreseeable that it wouldn’t stop there; it would only continue to grow taller.

Along with its size, its strength had also surged. According to Surtr, it was racking up more and more victories in the arenas of the Celestial Net Space.

The second comprehensive report had been submitted. Chen Shang took the opportunity to discuss extensive knowledge regarding energy circulation with Hathaway. At the same time, he showed her his Second Magic Spring, earning her approval and guidance, which benefited him greatly.

A few peaceful days passed before a knock came from the laboratory door.

Chen Shang opened it to find a chubby young man standing outside. He wore a crisp new robe with a Second Level Apprentice badge pinned to his chest, a bright smile on his round face.

"Baal? You’re back?"

"Yeah, brought you some local specialties." Baal weighed a cloth bag in his hand, gesturing toward Chen Shang.

Chen Shang stepped aside to let Baal in. The latter placed the cloth bag on the table and pulled out several items.

A golden potion, a small vial of dark red liquid, a fist-sized metal ingot with intricate patterns on its surface, and a beautifully packaged box of handmade snacks.

"These are all specialties from the Lanhai Realm. The golden one is called ’Deep Sea Essence.’ Drinking it benefits your Spiritual Power. Of course, it’s far inferior to specialized potions.

"This red one is ’Dragon Blood Essence.’ It’s not actual Dragon Blood; it’s purified from the blood of a creature in that Plane called a Fire Dragon Lizard. It helps with Flame Affinity.

"This piece is a Moonlight Stone. It can stabilize the energy of Rune Arrays. And these snacks simply taste great."

Chen Shang glanced at the items on the table. They weren’t incredibly valuable, but it was the thought that counted. He smiled and asked, "How did the lawsuit go?"

"I won," Baal said, a hint of smugness in his tone. "The evidence was sufficient, the contract was clear, and I didn’t violate any clauses. The judge said their declining birth rate is an internal racial issue and can’t be blamed on my products.

"There are still some who refuse to accept it and want to appeal, but it’s been suppressed by someone higher up."

Speaking of this, Baal grew somewhat indignant and scoffed, "Some races have just lived in peace for so long they’ve forgotten their place.

"When will they realize that the Pan-Wizard Alliance established these rules because an ordered system benefits the entire Wizard World, not because Wizards are actually eager to follow such trivial regulations?

"If this were the ancient era, they would have been turned into slaves and sent to the mines long ago..."

Chen Shang just smiled and said nothing. In truth, Baal was right. The organizational strength, productivity, resource mobilization, and sustainable development capabilities of an ordered world were vastly superior to those of a chaotic one.

If Wizards had believed that a chaotic world offered greater benefits, the current global landscape would undoubtedly look entirely different.

"Forget it, let’s not talk about that," Baal said, sitting down on a chair. "I came this time to tell you two things."

His expression turned slightly more serious. "First, regarding the coordinate of that Demon’s world from last time, what are your plans?"

Chen Shang hesitated for a moment before answering slowly, "When I obtained a new world coordinate back then, I was overly excited. I was in a rush to convert it into resources.

"But judging from the memories of that smuggled Demon, that world is far beyond what a Wizard Apprentice should be eyeing.

"Besides, Star Fall is going to hold an academic assessment in ten years. I want to focus my efforts on preparing for that first."

Baal nodded. "That’s what I thought too. Actually, a Wizard Apprentice is only suited to operate within Planes established by a High Tower. Descending into a brand new world is still too difficult."

Generally speaking, an Apprentice had not yet undergone the metamorphosis of a First Level Wizard. Within a world established by a High Tower, they could be sheltered by the Wizard’s Will. Otherwise, the World’s Will alone would be more than they could handle.

Chen Shang recalled his first time entering a Plane Battlefield. Back then, the High Tower had not been fully established. Their group of Knights hid within the sanctuary of the logistics base while all the races of that Plane launched overwhelming, sky-covering attacks outside.

If he openly descended into Marcus’s Plane and got ganged up on by all the Netherworld Lords... just thinking about it sent shivers down his spine.

And if he were to smuggle himself in using an Exotic Object... he wouldn’t be able to reap many benefits anyway.

Baal moved on to the second matter. "Second, inspired by you, I’ve recently been working on a new project—an Automatic Rune Carving Machine.

"Basically, it involves pre-carving Rune Arrays onto a template and then batch-printing them onto carriers. Do you want in? You could help me test the compatibility with Plant Type Mechanical Armor."

Chen Shang’s eyes lit up upon hearing this. He poured Baal a drink, then sat down to ponder.

Although they were both striving toward automation, Chen Shang’s method was to have the runes grow out organically through plants.

Baal, on the other hand, took a different approach, akin to a printing press—carving a template and then printing it en masse.

Chen Shang quickly evaluated the pros and cons of both methods. "Your yield rate of Good Quality products will be higher than mine, but subsequent improvements will be extremely troublesome. If you want to make a new product, you’ll have to carve a brand new master template."

Baal shot him a thumbs-up. "Spot on, brother!"

He took a sip of his drink and continued, "But my major clients are basically fixed, so there are very few new demands. I don’t have any need for automated Demonic Puppets."

Chen Shang shook his head. Baal’s design met the needs of his own products, but it didn’t meet Chen Shang’s. His future Mythical Species would definitely require constant adjustments and improvements. Revising things template by template would still be far too inefficient.

"Hey, brother, what kind of drink is this? Why does it smell like Dragon Blood?" Baal suddenly set down his cup and examined it closely.

"Oh, it’s a traditional recipe from my hometown. You sever that specific part from a creature with a powerful Bloodline, process it, and then steep it in liquor or water. What you’re drinking was steeped with that part from a Sub-dragon."

Chen Shang answered casually, his mind still mulling over the feasibility of Baal’s proposal.

The chubby young man’s face drastically changed. He put the cup down with a stiff expression. "Are you saying... this is a Sub-dragon’s..."

His gaze swept to the side, landing on the massive organ suspended in that glass jar. His heart turned icy cold.

"Don’t worry, it’s been thoroughly cleaned. They say drinking it this way acts as an aphrodisiac..."

"Oh? Really?" Baal silently picked up the cup he had just put down and took another small sip of the beverage.

Chen Shang snapped out of his thoughts and nodded. "Theoretically, yes. But I haven’t taken it to a pharmacological agency for testing."

He had steeped the organ and listed the brew on the Celestial Net that day, expecting it to fetch a high price. To his surprise, he was quickly hit with a warning from the review system, claiming that the "aphrodisiac" label was false advertising.

Several male entities had messaged him privately, claiming they wanted to buy it "for a friend," but after learning of its ingredients, they vanished without a trace.

To this, Chen Shang could only conclude that these people simply didn’t know a good thing when they saw it!