Synthesis Wizard-Chapter 189

A wisp of blue smoke rose, swirling between the钟石乳 (钟石乳: a type of stone, a cultural reference from the novel, meaning unknown).

Walking through the city gate, now reduced to rubble, Xieman surveyed the devastated streets, his gaze darting around.

In the distance, he could hear faint shouts of battle. Sporadic clashes were still ongoing within the city, but the outcome was already decided. Soon, the war would be completely settled.

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Conquering Fire Hammer City had been surprisingly easy.

The dwarves had built their walls with sturdy, bright black rock, reinforced with molten ice iron, greatly enhancing the walls’ resistance to elemental energy.

They had also deployed various siege weapons on the walls, including even ballistae and catapults. The level of equipment was rare even in the entire underground world.

Unfortunately, they were facing an army of unstoppable, powerful magic puppets.

The attacks from the ballistae and catapults had limited effect on the puppets’ tough bodies.

The walls were equally unable to withstand the massive charge of the magic puppets.

Under the onslaught of the magic puppet army, led by a Gold Magic Puppet, Fire Hammer City’s pride, its defenses, crumbled in less than half an hour.

With the walls breached, the magic puppet army surged forward, quickly crushing Fire Hammer City’s defenders.

Now, most of Fire Hammer City was under the Star Alliance’s control.

The Magic Rune Knights were clearing out the remaining pockets of resistance. They were expected to completely take control of Fire Hammer City soon.

Leaving the mop-up operation to the Magic Rune Knights, Xieman and Atir led their Wizard Apprentices directly to the palace at the heart of Fire Hammer City.

To enhance their expansion efficiency, the Star Alliance’s forty-plus Second-Rank Sorcerer Apprentices were divided into two teams, led by Xieman and Atir, and Kore and Ethan, respectively. They, accompanied by the magic puppet army, were deployed in two separate campaigns to conquer native tribes and city-states.

Fire Hammer City was the seventh city-state Xieman’s army had conquered in over half a year.

The dwarven king had already died in the battle for the city gate. They were now going to the palace to collect the city-state’s wealth.

Their way into the palace was unimpeded. When they opened the warehouse and saw the countless precious metals and gold coins, all the Wizard Apprentices couldn’t help but gasp in awe.

“We’ve struck it rich!” exclaimed a Wizard Apprentice, his face beaming with excitement.

The others also wore expressions of joy.

The Contribution Points they earned from war were determined not only by the size and number of city-states they conquered, but primarily by the value of the spoils of war.

The higher the value of the spoils, the more Contribution Points they would ultimately receive.

Xieman was also quite pleased.

After storing all the spoils of war from the warehouse into his space ring, the group thoroughly searched the palace, making sure nothing was left behind, before making arrangements for accommodations.

After conquering Fire Hammer City, they would stay for a few more days, waiting for the next wave of troops to take over the city-state, replenish their supplies, and then move on to their next destination.

Xieman found a study and prepared to write his battle report.

He had to write a report summarizing recent battle developments every so often. These reports would ultimately reach his teacher’s desk.

Atir sat beside him, engaging in casual conversation.

“I heard there’s a crystal ball in Starlight Academy that can test your spiritual and physical data. I really want to see it.”

“We’ll be able to see it when we go back to the academy after we conquer Spider City.” Xieman said with a smile as he wrote his report.

They had been out conquering cities while the academy was open, so they hadn’t seen the academy for themselves. They could only get occasional updates from the apprentices who went back and forth from the battlefield to Dragon Forest.

But this situation wouldn’t last long. The Star Alliance’s front lines were now less than five hundred kilometers from Spider City. If all went well, they should be able to conquer Spider City within a year at most.

At that time, the war would end, and they would be able to return to the academy.

“I heard that the three new instructors at the academy were previously part of the same wizard organization as your teacher. I think they called it the Mysterious Wooden Hut?” Atir’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. “I wonder what they’re like?”

Xieman pondered for a moment, “Those who were in the same wizard organization as my teacher must have exceptional skills and knowledge.”

“That’s true.” Atir nodded in agreement.

Those invited by their teacher to be academy instructors were naturally no ordinary individuals.

“Having instructors teaching will make it easier for future students to learn knowledge.”

“It’s a pity we didn’t arrive at a better time.”

“That’s not exactly right. When we first arrived, there were very few people in the base. We could even exchange Contribution Points for guidance from the teacher back then, which isn’t bad.” Xieman said with a smile.

Atir thought about it and realized he was right. Plus, they could ask Amy for help when they didn’t understand something back then.

Later students wouldn’t have such good treatment.

Now, Amy was obsessed with treasure hunting across the underground world. She had no time to care for others.

She only interacted with them, Xieman, and Kore occasionally.

Many of the new apprentices had only heard of Amy but never met her.

“The new round of aptitude testing ended a few days ago. They say that a lot of people passed this time. The academy should have a large batch of new students this year.”

“This is good news.” A faint smile appeared on Xieman’s face.

As their teacher ascended to the rank of Wizard, the Star Alliance’s growth was accelerating at a visible pace.

The establishment of Starlight Academy was a testament to the beginning of a new era.

From now on, Wizard Apprentices would become increasingly active in the Starlight Continent, participating in more events and becoming known to more people. They wouldn’t be confined to legends like before.

The current situation in the underground world was a powerful testament to this.

The Star Alliance’s territory now stretched across most of the Southeast Domain. Even the most remote corners of the underground world had heard of the Star Alliance. The formidable reputation of Wizards (Apprentices) had spread throughout the entire underground world.

This situation would likely be repeated in the surface world in the near future.

While the surface world seemed peaceful now, Xieman knew that the Star Empire hadn’t stopped its bulk purchases from the Star Alliance. They were even increasing the volume, clearly preparing for the next war.

In the near future, the Star Empire would likely launch a new round of wars to completely unify the Southeast Domain.

And a dominant empire ruling the Southeast Domain of the continent was undoubtedly in line with the Star Alliance’s interests.

At that time, their teacher might allow the Star Alliance to assist.

Xieman was deep in thought when a sudden burst of footsteps interrupted him.

A Wizard Apprentice walked in.

“Captain, the Magic Rune Knights have made a new discovery. You should come and take a look.”

Xieman looked puzzled.

A dwarven city-state, what could possibly warrant such attention from a Wizard Apprentice in his team?

Intrigued, Xieman put down his pen and rose from his seat. He left the study and joined Atir in the palace’s central square.

Near the entrance of the square, a group of Dragon Antelope leisurely paced back and forth.

These powerful and elegant creatures had gradient scales ranging from reddish-brown to bright gold. Their large wings extended from their shoulders and could span up to nine meters when in flight.

The Dragon Antelope Knight force had been formed during the Star Alliance’s period of inactivity. So, they hadn’t truly proven their strength on the battlefield.

It wasn’t until the Star Alliance resumed its expansion efforts over half a year ago that the Dragon Antelope Knights had the opportunity to showcase their power.

Their brilliant performance had astounded many.

In the underground world, very few armies could withstand the combined charge of nearly three hundred legendary-tier knights.

During the previous siege, after the Fire Hammer City walls collapsed, it was the Dragon Antelope Knight force’s charge that tore through the dwarves’ last line of defense, securing victory.

Such a spectacular performance made Xieman look forward to the future of this force.

When the number of Dragon Antelope Knights increased and reached the size of a small legion, they would inevitably become a powerful force that would strike fear into the hearts of their enemies.

Pulling his gaze away from the Dragon Antelope, Xieman turned towards the group of people in the center of the square.

It was a dozen fully armed knights, led by Koren, one of the deputy commanders of the Magic Rune Knights. He was also the commander of this Dragon Antelope Knight force.

“Xieman, Atir.”

Koren immediately approached them upon spotting Xieman and Atir.

Although he had ascended to the rank of Legendary Knight and held the position of deputy commander of the Magic Rune Knights, he still didn’t dare to be careless or dismissive in front of the two most outstanding students under Su Nan.

“Thank you for your hard work, Commander Koren.”

After exchanging greetings and pleasantries, Xieman got straight to the point and asked about the so-called discovery.

Koren pointed to a dwarf sitting on the ground, bound by chains. “We found this guy in Fire Hammer City’s prison. According to the prison guards, he escaped from a city-state that was conquered by the Dark Elves. He came to Fire Hammer City and was imprisoned by the dwarves.”

“I thought he might have some information we could extract from him, so I had him brought here. It turns out he actually knew something.”

Hearing that it was related to the Dark Elves, Xieman and Atir instantly grew more serious.

Xieman turned to look at the dwarf.

Perhaps due to the hardships of his escape or the torture he endured at the hands of the dwarves, the dwarf was dressed in tattered clothes that offered little protection. He was covered in grime, visibly haggard, and his face was filled with fear.

The dwarves and the gnomes were both considered “Stone Kin,” skilled in dealing with stone. They excelled at mining, digging, and smelting.

The former were known for metal forging, boasting many skilled blacksmiths. The weapons and armor they forged were highly sought after in the underground world.

The latter, however, were mostly skilled in fine mechanical craftsmanship.

Despite being Stone Kin, dwarves and gnomes had a poor relationship. They disliked each other and often clashed.

It wasn’t surprising that a gnome would end up in a dwarven city and thrown into prison.

Withdrawing his gaze, Xieman looked at Koren questioningly.

Koren didn’t beat around the bush. He said with a solemn expression, “According to this guy, the Dark Elves have suddenly intensified their offensive in the past six months. They’ve conquered many city-states. Now, the area within three hundred kilometers of Spider City is already under their control.”

Xieman and Atir immediately furrowed their brows.

They had known about Spider City’s military operations against nearby city-states years ago.

While they were surprised that the Dark Elves, contrary to their usual behavior, had stopped their infighting and united, Spider City was still far from the Star Alliance at the time. Their military operations were only minor skirmishes, so the Star Alliance hadn’t paid much attention.

They never expected that Spider City’s territory had already expanded to such an extent.

Based on this, they were now not far from Spider City’s territory. If they went another hundred kilometers, they would probably encounter Spider City’s army.

Xieman frowned, puzzled. “Spider City shouldn’t have enough power to take over so much territory. What happened?”

Koren glanced at the gnome and whispered, “According to this guy, it’s because the Dark Elves have a very powerful monster. Just one of them defeated their city-state’s army!”

Monster?

Xieman quickly thought of the beasts the Dark Elves usually kept, but none of them had such formidable power.

Frowning, he turned to the gnome and looked down at him.

“What do those monsters look like?”

Recognizing the high status of the person asking, the gnome didn’t dare to hide anything. He swallowed hard and stammered, “They, they have spider lower bodies and Dark Elf upper bodies. They’re very fast. Many of my people didn’t even see their movements before they, they were beheaded!”

The gnome’s face contorted in fear as if he was reliving the scene.

Half-human, half-spider monsters?

Xieman pondered for a moment, but still couldn’t figure it out.

Atir was just as puzzled.

“Forget it. We’ll just write this down in the battle report. If it’s my teacher, he should know what kind of creature it is.”

Knowing what to do, Xieman ignored the gnome and turned to Koren. “Commander Koren, I think we need to send out more scouts to investigate the situation ahead.”

“No problem. I’ll go make arrangements right away!” Koren nodded vigorously.

If the gnome’s words were true, they might have to face a formidable enemy in the next battle.

Before that, gathering as much information as possible would help them better prepare for the upcoming war.

After Koren left with the gnome, Xieman and Atir returned to the study.

Xieman tore up the previous battle report, thought for a moment, and then felt confident enough to write a new one.

This time, Atir didn’t bother him. She sat quietly, patiently waiting for Xieman to finish writing the report and seal it before speaking.

“Should we ask for reinforcements?”

Xieman thought about it and nodded. “Caroline said that my teacher recently refined a powerful high-level puppet. He was just about to deploy it on the battlefield. Just in case, I’ll write a request for one.”

From the gnome’s words, the half-human, half-spider monster was at least a four-ring Legendary creature, possibly even higher. The strongest puppet in the magic puppet army on the front lines was a three-ring Legendary Gold Magic Puppet.

While they could use a human wave tactic to deal with that monster, for the sake of safety, Xieman thought it was best to be prepared.

Seeing that Xieman had everything under control, Atir didn’t say anything more.

(End of Chapter)