Ian

After considering that he still needed to save money for the class-change ceremony—and that there would definitely be more than one—he forcibly suppressed his urge to splurge and obediently bought a standard military longbow for 1,088 silver coins, equivalent to ten Gold Coins and eighty-eight silver coins.

He also spent one Gold Coin on three quivers of high-quality armor-piercing arrows, as well as the best standard short sword and standard dagger available here. Altogether, the purchases cost slightly more than twenty-five Gold Coins.

Even though he had been extremely frugal, this set of equipment had still reduced the mere hundred or so Gold Coins he had left by a quarter.

The purchasing power of Gold Coins was terrifyingly high, but he had chosen nothing but high-end goods.

Although the spellcasting materials on him made up the bulk of his wealth, he had no intention of selling those hard-to-find items. After thinking it over, he decided to sell the materials from the Azure Wolves on the Magical Beast materials market, which he had heard about.

Even if he only sold the main materials from the more valuable parts while keeping the rest of what he had, he could still make over a hundred Gold Coins.

What a pity about those wolf pelts. They had taken up too much space, so he had not brought them along. Aitiya and the others' personal weapons had also been buried with them back then. Now that he had seen the prices of the weapons here, he truly felt like vomiting blood.

At the time, his thoughts had been quite simple. Well, when someone died in battle, their weapons were buried with them too, right? Besides, he could not have fit everything into the Spatial Bag. Aitiya's greatsword and tower shield alone would not have fit, even though the interior space of the Spatial Bag was malleable.

Only now, after vaguely learning their approximate prices, did he feel like crying without tears. If I had known, I would've carried them back even if I had to put them on my own back! Well, they probably hoped their weapons would continue fighting in their place, he thought shamelessly.

Afterward, he became somewhat absent-minded again. He hoped that, on the other side of heaven, they could be happy...

Since crossing over, he had not encountered a single thing that went smoothly. Even asking that salesgirl out just now had gone badly. It was rare for him to pretend to admire the scenery while 'tactfully' asking her to have a drink at an inn, only for her to politely refuse and say that he should treat her to a meal first.

After being deceived by the Potion Bitch, Xuan Ye had practically developed a phobia. He had only thought that he might have a chance with this relatively 'down-to-earth' waitress, but unexpectedly, he still failed.

Sigh, as expected, pretty girls are all troublesome. I should wake up. She only wants to trick me into buying her a meal, yet she doesn't want to give anything in return. Where is the most basic trust between people? Fortunately, I saw through her with my own cleverness.

In his previous life, he had been a useless shut-in preparing to become a Great Sage. He had thought that after coming here, he would finally find a chance to break through that barrier, but he had discovered that it was still just as difficult. Tch, who cares? I'm going to become the Magic King...

Following the directions, he arrived at the Magical Beast materials market. Seeing the bustling crowds before him and the booming business of both the shops and street stalls, Xuan Ye finally relaxed. In such a lively market, there should be a Magic Core that suited his needs.

After exchanging most of the Azure Wolf materials he did not need for 123 Gold Coins, Xuan Ye also found a blacksmith and ordered ten of the Azure Wolf's teeth to be made into ten Demon-Breaking Arrows.

Azure Wolf teeth retained most of their original form and naturally possessed low-level dispelling runes. Combined with powerful arrows, they had decent armor-piercing abilities against various magical shields.

He was not preparing to deal with mages. He was merely keeping them as a fallback, since he still possessed some items and scrolls capable of activating magical shields.

"An Earth Magic Core? Yes, yes, we have them. Here, this is a Desert Giant Lizard Magic Core we just received. They say it belonged to a powerful Giant Lizard with Three-Star strength."

After entering a relatively large materials shop, Xuan Ye immediately stated his purpose. The shopkeeper reacted enthusiastically and soon brought out a box, opened it, and began promoting the item.

When he heard that the shopkeeper had one, Xuan Ye was delighted and thought his luck had finally turned around. But when he heard that it was a Desert Giant Lizard Magic Core, his heart sank. When the shopkeeper opened the box and took out the core, the veins at the corners of his eyes began twitching.

Are you messing with me? This is a Sand Magic Core!

"This is a Sand Magic Core, boss. Judging from its fluctuations, it's merely a Magic Core luckily condensed after the death of an ordinary One-Star magical beast. Its effects are actually about the same, but there's still a slight difference in quality. I want an Earth Magic Core—a pure Earth Magic Core."

Xuan Ye made no attempt to hide his criticism and exposed the shopkeeper to his face. Sorry, but he was simply that straightforward.

"You! Do you even understand? Sand is a branch of earth, all right? Anything an Earth Magic Core can do, a Sand Magic Core can do as well—and even better! Besides, this is clearly a Three-Star magical beast's Magic Core, yet you're calling it a One-Star core just to lower the price. How can you behave like this?"

After hearing Xuan Ye's words, the shopkeeper's originally professional smile immediately changed. He began speaking with spit flying everywhere.

Before Xuan Ye could refute him, a light chuckle came from beside them, followed by a gentle voice.

"Sand and earth are still different. Sand Magic Cores are more active and are better suited for making scrolls such as Quicksand Art. They also work somewhat better when used to compound Baptismal Potions. Earth Magic Cores are purer, making them superior as the cores of defensive arrays, and they can also be used for class-change ceremonies. Generally speaking, however, the two can still substitute for each other most of the time."

A robed man who appeared to be around thirty then walked in. After taking a closer look at the Magic Core, a faint trace of surprise appeared in his eyes. He continued, "This is indeed a Magic Core condensed by a One-Star magical beast. Generally speaking, the effects of Magic Cores condensed by One- to Three-Star Predator Rank Magical Beasts do not differ greatly. It is merely easier for a core to remain after a Three-Star magical beast dies. Still, careful examination with Spiritual Power can reveal slight differences."

After first explaining this to the shopkeeper, he turned around and looked at Xuan Ye with interest. "Are you also cultivating active Spiritual Power? Hmm, a bow and arrows... Are you preparing to pursue a Special Profession along the Ranger route? An Earth Ranger?"

Looking at this young man who had suddenly appeared and possessed such a strong thirst for knowledge, like a curious child, Xuan Ye could not help rolling his eyes. Ranger your sister! Your entire family are Rangers!

When the other man had examined the Magic Core just now, Xuan Ye had also sensed an outward surge of Spiritual Power. It was slightly more substantial than his own, probably around the level of an Eighth-Grade Apprentice. Well, even the status of an Eighth-Grade Apprentice should be fairly high, right?

Just as this thought crossed Xuan Ye's mind, the shopkeeper immediately put on a honey-smeared expression.

"Oh my, so you're Archmage Ian! I truly must thank you for your guidance. I never thought I had actually been deceived by the person who sold me this Magic Core."

Right, then. His status really was high. But why did it sound so nauseating?

After being addressed that way by the shopkeeper, Ian smiled faintly and said calmly, "It would be fine to address me that way normally, but with a fellow professional present today, it would be inappropriate. I'm merely an Eighth-Grade Apprentice. Have the items I ordered arrived?"

"They've been prepared. I was just about to have them delivered to you."

Pulling two boxes out from beneath the counter, the shopkeeper directly left Xuan Ye aside.

Using Mage's Hand to receive the two boxes, Ian turned back toward Xuan Ye and smiled.

"How about this? Answer my earlier question, and I'll tell you where to find a pure Earth Magic Core."

Xuan Ye felt that the other man was asking for a beating, but he had precisely hit his weak point—cough, no, his vital point. With this shopkeeper unable to tell Sand Magic Cores from Earth Magic Cores, asking a professional really was the only reliable option.

"I'm preparing to pursue the mage route. I'm only temporarily playing at being an archer."

Out of spite, Xuan Ye 'honestly' stated the deepest thought in his heart.

"Uh..."

Clearly, Xuan Ye's answer left Ian somewhat stunned. He intended to pursue the mage route, yet he was dressed like a Ranger. This...

The reason mages were special, the reason they could remain at home without going outside while steadily increasing their strength, was because they needed a spirit of professional study. Even when traveling outside, they absolutely should not dress like this.

A mage was a mage. Even a Special Profession such as a Paladin, despite having unlocked the Star Palace, could not be called a mage!

Without understanding the mysteries of magic, without studying the principles of nature, and without possessing extensive knowledge, one was merely a mortal with somewhat powerful Spiritual Power, no matter how fully one's Star Palace had been unlocked.

"Heh heh, you really know how to joke, brother."

After rubbing his nose, Ian spoke with a wry smile.

At this moment, Xuan Ye wore an amused expression and waved a finger.

"Looks like you don't believe me. I have no reason to lie to you. For example, the Golden Orchid and Specter Grass you've collected are for trying to make a new batch of Basic Meditation Potion, right? Though I'm guessing you haven't put much thought into potions and are only playing around with them."

After Xuan Ye finished speaking, Ian instead revealed a strange expression.

"How did you know?"

He really had planned to go back and casually compound some of the simplest Basic Meditation Potion as practice. But because he had yet to break through to the professional rank and his time was precious, he had not devoted much effort to it. At most, it would be something to ease his mood after the monotonous meditation. But how could this obviously unfamiliar person know that?

He had not even opened these two boxes yet!

The next chapter will be after midnight. I can't help it—the editor has already insisted that I limit the number of words updated each day. Three chapters over two days, sob...

As for the word count, it's about the same as the usual two daily updates from other books. The shorter chapters will be made up for after mid-September. You can play with me however you like.

Thanks to Jidao Wuyu, The Cloud at the Edge of the Sky djt, Newcomer Old Friend, and Fengfengfeng111 for your rewards. Please continue supporting me! If the results improve a little more, I won't have to worry about so many restrictions.