Wands were one of the most important pieces of equipment for spellcasters, and even more so for Legendary Wizards. Together with Wizard Robes and Wizard Hats, they were known as the wizard's three-piece set.
Among the three, wands were even more important, because even for other spellcasters who did not rely on legend, a wand could greatly increase their strength.
Of course, such impressive effects came with an equally impressive price. Isaac knew a little about how expensive wands were, and for now, he had no plans to buy one—or rather, no budget...
Still, since he was already here, Isaac decided to take a look around Wand Avenue. He could at least broaden his horizons.
Before long, Isaac had not only finished browsing Wand Avenue, but also the other three avenues: Spell Avenue, Materials Avenue, and General Merchandise Avenue.
How should he put it?
The names might have sounded ordinary, but the goods inside were absolutely genuine. Isaac was dazzled by what he saw.
Good thing his purse was thin, or he would have been unable to resist going on a shopping spree.
Although he had not bought anything after making a full round, Isaac had not come away empty-handed. He now had a much clearer understanding of Lake Town.
First, Lake Town was not, as his previous information had claimed, the trading center for all spellcasters in this world. More accurately, it was one of them.
Still, the spellcasters in Lake Town did seem to come from every corner of the world. In one lap around the town, he had heard five or six different languages, not to mention the far greater number speaking the common tongue with accents.
Second, although the goods for sale were mainly concentrated along the four avenues, that did not mean there were only four avenues. The four districts carved out by the avenues each had their own distinctive features.
According to what he had learned, most of those areas housed outposts belonging to various wizard organizations, along with a small number of shops that supposedly sold all manner of things.
But Isaac was not interested in that, at least not for now.
He was interested in joining a wizard organization, but they would not take him. The wizard organizations in Lake Town only recruited Grand Wizards or above. He had only just become a Formal Wizard, so he was still far from qualified.
Once Isaac had gained a general understanding of Lake Town, he stopped hesitating and headed straight for his destination to take care of business!
First, he sold the Blood Essence Potion in his possession to a potion shop for eighty Gold Coins. That was twenty Gold Coins below market price, but he could not help it. He was pressed for time.
If he sold it himself, he would have to set up a stall on General Merchandise Avenue. There was no guarantee he would even find a buyer, and even if he did, he would most likely only get ninety Gold Coins. There was no way he could sell it for a hundred—why would anyone not just buy it directly from a shop?
After selling the potion, Isaac bought materials for three Blood Essence Potions from the same shop for 120 Gold Coins. Then he went to General Merchandise Avenue and bought a knight-level Alchemy Golem for 100 Gold Coins. Finally, he went to Spell Avenue and spent 156 Gold Coins on three Magic Books.
By then, Isaac had spent almost all the funds he had brought with him.
After finishing his purchases, Isaac did not linger. With only four Gold Coins left in his pocket, there was little point in staying. He might as well go back, continue studying magic, and improve his strength.
Taking the golem with him, Isaac boarded a small boat and passed through a layer of white mist, returning to the woods. The Old Witch was still slowly stirring her cauldron, showing no reaction whatsoever to Isaac's arrival.
She might not have reacted, but Isaac could not simply ignore her. After giving the Old Witch a slight bow to show his respect, he led the Alchemy Golem out of the woods and onto the training ground before the castle.
At that moment, Barton stood bare-chested on the training ground, his upper body flushed red as he trained with grunts under Smith's watchful gaze. Isaac could sense the magical fluctuations of a potion from him, which meant he had already drunk it.
But...
"Young Master Isaac." x2
Isaac swept his gaze over Barton from head to toe, one brow rising. He had not broken through even after drinking a bottle?
He turned to glance at the Black Knight-like Alchemy Golem behind him and immediately understood why the family had not given Barton a potion to help him break through. Spending a hundred Gold Coins on a living person might amount to nothing, but spending it on a golem meant guaranteed results!
Meanwhile, Barton had already been somewhat embarrassed by his failure to break through. Now, seeing the golem behind Isaac radiating danger, an even stronger sense of crisis rose in his heart!
"Uncle Smith, spar with it and see how strong it is." Isaac waved a hand to signal Barton to continue training, then spoke to Smith.
"Yes, Young Master." Smith gave a slight nod.
He was no stranger to golems, because the Solomon Family had them too, and had even formed a special legion out of them. Of course, Isaac's was only slightly stronger than the lowest-grade golems and could not compare with those at the family estate.
Naturally, such a golem was not much trouble for Smith.
Boom!
The instant Isaac gave the order, the Black Knight behind him charged out first. Red light flared wildly in its eyes as it wielded its greatsword and slammed into Smith!
Isaac's pupils contracted. He had not been able to see either the Black Knight's movements or Smith's movements clearly just now!
Then, as Smith wielded a Staff Sword and began an intense clash with the greatsword-wielding Black Knight in the middle of the field, an unrealistic notion in Isaac's heart slowly faded away—the potion should still go to Demonic Claw.
He had originally wanted to try cultivating both magic and martial arts. It was actually a pretty good path, and quite a few wizards in the current wizarding world followed it. He had even seen several wizard organizations specializing in that direction.
He had thought he could do it too!
Was it not just physical strength?
Was it not just special abilities?
There was no problem magic could not solve!
But that had been his thinking before Smith and the Black Knight crossed blades. Now...
He should just wash up and go to bed.
Watching the surging sword energy on the training ground and the dazzling movements, Isaac abandoned that unrealistic notion. He should just honestly cast spells. Melee combat was not for him.
A knight's strength came partly from powerful physical abilities, but beyond that, battle techniques honed through countless trials were equally important.
Take the battle on the training ground right now. As the fight continued, Isaac could more or less make out Smith and the Black Knight's movements.
In this battle, as an Alchemy Golem, the Black Knight's physical abilities were unquestionably superior to Smith's. After all, it had a body of steel, while Smith was already old and his bodily functions had begun to decline. Yet Smith was the one holding the upper hand.
He effortlessly parried the Black Knight's attacks, the Staff Sword in his hand moving as naturally as an extension of his arm as he guided the Black Knight into displaying its three preprogrammed combat styles one after another.
That composure, that confidence—those were not things one could gain by chugging potions!
And Smith was not even among the strongest knights!
"Stop. I more or less understand now." Isaac waved his hand, signaling Smith to stop. He had learned enough. If they kept going, they would have to replace the energy source, and with his modest means, he needed to be frugal.
"Yes, Young Master Isaac."
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