Dodol III, Gold Beard

Ronan's face showed a slightly satisfied expression when he saw the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent submit.

The month-long training and constant travel have finally yielded some results.

It must be said that the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent's strength is still quite terrifying.

Three years ago, Ronan's bloodline underwent a second purification, and this guy probably made the biggest "sacrifice" for him.

Ronan only remembered that when he woke up from the blood cocoon, the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent he saw was extremely weak and listless, with even the single horn on its head, which symbolized the Ancient Snake Species, had lost its luster.

He was quite moved and felt guilty at the time, and even Bennigo that he would use some of his resources to compensate the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent.

Bennigo coldly declined, saying it was its duty as Magic Pet, and also a perfect opportunity to relieve the pressing pressure from the "Posilena's Wager Pact."

The poor Ice Crystal Magic Serpent ultimately returned to the Primeval Forest alone in a state of extreme weakness.

Unexpectedly, three years later, Bennigo still looked prematurely aged, while this guy was as energetic as could be.

Not only did it advance to the Third Level Magic Beast, but its abilities in all aspects also improved significantly.

Ronan estimated that the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent's current combat power was roughly equivalent to that of Ignatius when he had fully awakened his bloodline three years ago.

This guy has only lived for less than four years since he was born.

"Ancient bloodlines are indeed enviable, with almost limitless potential..."

If it weren't for the natural suppression of the one percent of Ancient Frost Hydra Bloodline within him, he would have had to put in a lot of effort to suppress it.

Ronan thought to himself and opened his Character Panel: [Strength: Second Level Formal Wizard (172%)]. After more than a month, Ronan's strength had not increased at all; in fact, it had regressed.

The cause originated within his body. At this moment, within Ronan's Consciousness Space, the Soul Rune belonging to the [Tundra Frozen Earth] within the first Spiritual Power Crystal underwent some changes.

The original [Tundra Frozen Earth] seal now seemed to be surrounded by a beautiful and intricate silver border, conveying not only the icy chill of frost but also the mystery of space and mirrors.

Ronan had only briefly tested the modified [Tundra Frozen Earth] rune on the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent, and he was quite satisfied with its upgraded power.

"Three years have allowed me to solidify my foundation and close some of the gap between myself and the top geniuses of those great wizarding forces. I have basically achieved all my expectations. The only thing I still lack is probably my mental strength cultivation."

Ronan glanced at his Character Panel, his eyes flickering slightly.

This gap is something that cannot be forced. With less than three months left before the deadline for the battle to secure the Helamus Genius Seat, he can only try his best to gain it.

Following Kosti's advice, I came to explore the Mechanical Heart, hoping to find something within Mechanical Heart that could compensate for the last bit of Soul Power I lacked in my advancement to Third Level Wizard.

He could only hope that "Schubert's Marvelous Mystery Box" would bring him some real surprises.

Ronan thought for a moment and glanced around briefly.

He took out the "Schubert Wonder Box" that Kosti had given him from his Space Ring. The strange metal box, covered with gears, was filled with a mysterious and ancient aura.

After taking the box out, Ronan immediately noticed that the interlocking brass gears on the box were rotating much faster than they had been in the Silver Magic Ring.

It seems to possess a certain guiding function.

Ronan lightly jumped onto the head of the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent, holding the magic box in one hand, and commanded the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent to roam around the wasteland.

Based on the speed at which the gears on the magic box rotated, he quickly determined a direction and then continued to search deeper in that direction.

"Click-clack—"

As the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent swam to a low hill, Ronan suddenly heard the magic box in his hand emit an extremely crisp sound of gears turning.

The powerful mental energy of a late-stage level two wizard suddenly spread out, and the [Eye of Truth] silently wove itself between his brows.

In a field of vision composed of countless dappled points of light, Ronan saw a living creature made of complex lines slowly emerge from behind the hill.

Under the detection of the Eye of Truth, lines signify the orderly arrangement of free energy particles, often representing a completed spell or an active Rune Array.

Ronan saw that it was an ordinary-looking Short-legged Gray Goat with a broken horn on its head and one leg that seemed to be born shorter, so it walked with a limp, which was somewhat comical.

Bathed in the dim sunlight of the wasteland, the grey goat's entire body gleamed with a faint metallic sheen, including every single curly strand of its wool.

Its movements and expressions, especially its clear black and white eyes, are incredibly lifelike, just like a real goat.

At this moment, Ronan was completely captivated by the internal structure of the lame grey goat.

Through the goat's exterior, he "saw" five vibrant, beating metal hearts made up of countless gears, intricately connected mechanical parts, and a vast array of complex Rune Array that were both independent and interconnected—"simply a masterpiece of alchemy and runic science."

Ronan squinted and murmured softly.

Actually, he wasn't particularly fond of Metal Puppet magic, but above Metal Element magic, golems were an extremely important and powerful magic school.

There is no corresponding inheritance within the Silver Magic Ring. If he wants to continue down the path of Metal Element magic in the future, now is the perfect time to start preparing.

Just as Ronan was examining the Metal Puppet, the latter also noticed the presence of Ronan and the snake.

The little creature was quite alert. Perhaps it had just wandered from behind the hill to the front and accidentally made eye contact with Ronan. Upon spotting Ronan, its two short black ears immediately perked up, and then it turned and ran away.

Ronan's eyes flickered slightly. Without him needing to say anything, the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent beneath him had already darted away.

Although he came to find the Mechanical Heart Ruins, he had no reason to let go of something that made his heart flutter when he encountered it at the entrance.

The small hill, a dozen meters high, was merely a tiny obstacle that the hundred-meter-long Ice Crystal Magic Serpent could easily cross with a simple stretch of its body. However, once the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent had crossed the hill, Ronan was astonished to find that the mechanical gray goat had already run hundreds of meters away.

Despite having a limp, it was incredibly fast, almost escaping Ronan's mental range in an instant.

"Call--"

The pursuing Ice Crystal Magic Serpent opened its mouth and spat out Kiss of Extreme Cold.

The rolling frost turned into a cold current, forming a column that quickly moved towards the gray goats in the distance.

Wherever the pillar of cold air passed, large swathes of land were frozen by thick magical frost, and the area within a radius of several miles seemed to go directly from the Yan Xia to the depths of winter.

As the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent advanced to the third tier, its breath now carried a hint of the might of an ancient demonic beast overlord.

The rapidly spreading frost caught up with the fleeing gray goat in the blink of an eye, instantly freezing it solid into a block of ice.

The lame gray goat, in a frantic, all-out dash, was frozen inside translucent ice.

Having done all this, the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent closed its mouth and swam forward unhurriedly and calmly.

However, before it could carry Ronan to the scene, the huge block of ice in front of it exploded with a "bang," and a gray shadow disappeared at a speed that was difficult to detect with the naked eye.

"Well"

Not only was Ronan stunned, but even the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent was taken aback.

Both Ronan and the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent were well aware of the magical power contained in that frost breath.

If a typical Third Level Magic Beast were hit by that breath, it would most likely freeze solid on the spot. Even if it didn't die instantly, it would certainly be unable to move for a short period of time.

The Ice Crystal Magic Serpent can feast in the primeval forest, treating all kinds of magical beasts, even those stronger than itself, as resources for its growth, all thanks to this icy power that comes from its bloodline and is inherited from ancient times.

Ronan had also experienced it firsthand; even with the Ancient Frost Hydra Bloodline, he wasn't in a good position if he was hit head-on by the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent's innate breath.

However, how could that seemingly Metal Puppet goat escape so easily? It wasn't even affected in terms of its escape speed.

Were its internal mechanical components and Rune Array completely undamaged by the power of frost? "Hiss—"

The Ice Crystal Magic Serpent felt its domineering authority challenged, especially by something it considered an ant. Its eyes instantly darkened, and it was about to give chase.

However, Ronan was faster.

Beneath the robes, two metals wriggled as if alive, quickly attaching themselves to Ronan's body and transforming him into a mysterious knight seemingly encased in layers of armor.

The [[Space Silvering]] rune is activated, and the black metal armor transforms into a deep and beautiful silver.

Ronan swayed, the sunlight of the wasteland falling on him, reflecting a hazy and mysterious color.

"Whoosh—"

His figure briefly disappeared into the air, then reappeared hundreds of meters away.

After the initial creation of the [[Space Silvering]] rune, Ronan used [Living Steel] in conjunction with it to achieve a "short-distance spatial teleportation" effect similar to the Mirror Dagger artifact.

Whether chasing or fleeing, there's no longer a need to keep stabbing yourself with the Mirror Dagger like you did during the battle on the Goblin Plain.

Although the teleportation distance is not long, at most only about half that of the Mirror Dagger artifact, the cooldown time is also greatly shortened because it is activated by the Soul Rune, requiring only a few seconds. In comparison, this greatly enhances Ronan's mobility.

Ronan blinked a few times, and the gray goat reappeared in his sight.

For some reason, the creature had stopped and was burying its head in a small mound of dirt, as if it were desperately trying to push something.

Ronan saw faint rays of light emanating from the mound of earth, and he vaguely sensed fluctuations in spatial energy.

Beneath the deep silver mask covered in spatial patterns, Ronan's eyes flickered slightly. Without any hesitation, a portion of the metal that made up his full-body armor rapidly detached and shot out like an arrow.

The silvery radiance leaped through the sunlight, abruptly appearing before the gray goat, and then, under Ronan's control, quickly wrapped around it.

"Stasis!"

Ronan stretched out his right hand, his five fingers loosely clenched, pointing towards the distance.

In an instant, the silver metal that was wrapped around the gray goat solidified quietly, reflecting a smooth, mirror-like luster.

The gray goat, which was burying its head and rooting around aimlessly, was lifted into the air by Ronan's teleportation, and the whole goat looked like an image sealed in a bright mirror.

The power to Stasis space!

The binding power was even stronger than the frost breath spewed by the Ice Crystal Magic Serpent earlier.

However, "Click—"

A clear crack suddenly appeared on the smooth metal mirror, and the gray goat trapped inside had its eyes rolling around, revealing a desperate struggle.

"Hiss--"

This time, Ronan was truly moved.

Even the power of spatial Stasis couldn't suppress this gray goat, so it was clear that this was definitely not an ordinary metal alchemical puppet.

Otherwise, the dwarven civilization of the Mechanical Heart would be far too powerful! Ronan hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not use the spatial collapse power after the Stasis to break the imprisoned mirror—he was worried about damaging the goat puppet that had brought him so much shock and surprise.

The more extraordinary the other party's performance, the higher their value is.

Ronan's gaze hardened, and with a flash, he disappeared from the spot.

"Click-clack—"

The cracks on the confined metal mirror were increasing, and the lame gray goat's limbs began to sway, as if it would jump out of the "mirror" at any moment.

Just as the mirror was about to shatter and the gray goat was about to escape, a slender, fair hand gently gripped its neck.

"Click-click-click—"

Those beautiful fingers, so exquisite that even women would be envious, contained an indescribable and terrifying [Great Strength]. After gripping the gray goat's neck, the fingers slowly sank in, leaving clear finger marks.

A creaking sound came from inside the gray goat, as if parts and Rune Array were collapsing under the strain.

Tiny sparks of energy emanated from its thick, curly fur. It seemed to sense a real crisis approaching, and the whole sheep immediately became docile.

She was more docile than ever before, with her head bowed and eyes lowered, and even stuck out her short pink tongue, trying to turn her head to lick Ronan's arm.

Ronan stared blankly at the gray goat in his hand.

He reached out his other hand and slowly stroked the goat's body, the movement seemingly a caress, but actually an attempt to further explore the goat's structure.

"Forged from a special alchemical metal, this metal seems to possess naturally strong spell immunity, yet it can also maintain the operation of Rune Array to a high degree and has excellent energy conduction capabilities."

A thoughtful look appeared in Ronan's eyes, as if he had discovered some secret to why the grey goat was so slippery.

"Um?!"

Suddenly, Ronan felt a soft metal collar around the gray goat's neck.

Parting the layers of metallic wool, a gleaming golden metal collar appeared before his eyes.

"This metal"

Ronan was momentarily stunned when he saw the collar.

He sensed an unprecedentedly large amount of metallic energy particles on the metal collar; it was as if the small collar contained an entire metal ocean.

In addition, there was an indescribable intense heat, which was an extremely dense concentration of fire-type energy particles.

Pure Metal Element magical materials are valued based on the amount of Metal Element energy particles they contain.

The more concentrated the energy particles in a metal material, the better it enhances Metal Element spells when used as a medium for magic, which is something all Metal Element wizards dream of.

"Third-order metallic materials?"

Ronan carefully examined the ring, quickly dismissing his own guess, "No, it's far more than level three! Level four, even level five is possible."

The deeper Ronan investigated, the more thrilling it became.

A sharp glint involuntarily flashed in his azure eyes.

"This is definitely a material for Dawn Rank magic tool!"

For a moment, Ronan even had a strong urge to immediately tear off the collar from the gray goat's neck and take it for himself.

However, he managed to suppress this impulse.

"Although its grade is ridiculously high, the quantity is far too small, unless it is mixed with other metallic media."

Another reason is that Ronan dislikes the fire element inherent in this ring.

As Ronan continued to feel his way down the collar, he suddenly touched a small metal tag.

He blinked, turned the sheep's head over, and flipped the metal plate up to examine it closely.

A metal tag of the same material and color as the collar, its shape suggesting it's a custom-made pet name tag.

The sign was engraved with some ancient and peculiar characters.

It is the language of dwarves.

Since the Mechanical Heart originated from the Dwarven civilization, Ronan had made a special trip to learn about it on his way here, and now it was proving useful.

"Dordor Short Tail III".

Ronan read the words on the plaque, then flipped it over.

There was also a line of small print on the back of the sign, which read—

"For my most beloved daughter, Barbabbia Gabriella Gold Beard!"