Wonderful and Fearsome Wizardly Methods

After his fifth attempt at Potion Making failed, Sunan used up the last portion of Subdragon Blood.

But he did not mind.

He himself was now the best proof; there was no need to produce any physical evidence.

After sleeping soundly, Sunan found Kei in the council hall the next day.

Kei had just returned from an inspection and was still clad in armor, looking travel-worn.

He sat in the hall with a group of knights and generals, discussing how to deal with the Blackscale Lizardmen's raids.

"The Blackscale Lizardmen invade every Frostfall Moon, stealing food to take back for the winter. By my reckoning, it is about time."

"Scouts spotted traces of the Blackscale Lizardmen more than ten kilometers north of the city yesterday."

"Those damned bandits never change!"

"My lord, give me a hundred men, and I will wipe out those bandits!"

Kei's brow furrowed tightly.

Blackstone City was only a small city. Its entire army numbered just over five hundred men.

More than half of them were militiamen who had only received basic training and had never truly seen blood.

They could defend the city well enough, but if sent out to fight the Blackscale Lizardmen, they would likely break at the first clash.

There were only a little over two hundred and fifty soldiers who could truly be called fighting forces.

Using such a small force to defend Blackstone City and the many surrounding villages was simply stretching things too thin.

Thinking of this, Kei could not help but feel a headache coming on.

Besides Owen, the Blackscale Lizardmen were another threat before him that had to be dealt with.

If he mishandled this, Blackstone City would have a hard winter this year.

Just as his head was aching, Kei caught sight of Sunan entering from the corner of his eye. He raised a hand to silence his subordinates and looked at Sunan.

"What is it?"

"I succeeded," Sunan said.

Kei stared blankly for a moment before realizing what Sunan meant. Half believing and half doubting, he asked, "You found a way to improve the army's strength?"

The others realized it as well and all turned to look at Sunan.

Yet their gazes were plainly skeptical.

Only one day had passed, and he had already developed a viable method?

No matter how they heard it, it sounded unreliable.

Faced with their doubtful stares, Sunan did not waste words. He walked straight to a long table, gripped its edge with one hand, and heaved.

With a creak, the heavy wooden table rose entirely off the ground, hovering steadily about twenty centimeters above the floor without the slightest wobble.

Everyone stared at the sight in utter shock, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

Everyone knew Sunan had a weak body. Normally, he could not even lift a longsword.

Yet now, he had effortlessly raised a solid-wood table weighing at least a hundred kilograms, and he still looked completely at ease.

His strength was probably no weaker than an Apprentice Knight's!

Coming back to his senses, Kei shot to his feet and stared at his younger brother with delight written all over his face.

"What is going on?"

Sunan set the table down, smiled, and nodded. "I made a potion that can strengthen the human body. I drank one bottle myself, and my physique is now roughly equivalent to an Apprentice Knight's. The worse the drinker's physique, the stronger the potion's effect. It also works on Formal Knights and can be taken multiple times, though its effects will gradually weaken. As for more specific details, I will need more data before I can analyze them."

As Kei listened, his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

If that was the case, then with enough potions, they could mass-produce Apprentice Knights, or even knights.

If an ordinary person could become an Apprentice Knight after drinking the potion, then wouldn't an Apprentice Knight have a strong chance of advancing to a Formal Knight?

Kei was so excited that his face flushed red.

Those who had never been lords could never understand how difficult it was to train a knight in this day and age.

Starting from the age of twelve, an ordinary person had to train their skills and temper their body for an average of four or five years before their physical condition was good enough to practice a Breathing Technique and advance to Knight Attendant.

A Knight Attendant generally had to practice a Breathing Technique for another four or five years before advancing to Apprentice Knight.

After that came another seven or eight years of training before they could condense a Seed of Life and advance to Formal Knight.

All told, training a knight took an average of seventeen or eighteen years.

And that was only for those with sufficient talent.

Those with poor talent might never become knights in their entire lives.

Moreover, the manpower and resources consumed during the training process were also an enormous expense.

Thus, even nobles with real authority over their territories often could not train many knights.

Take the Shining Territory as an example. Even at its peak, the total number of knights in the territory had never exceeded a hundred.

It was clear just how precious a potion capable of producing knights in a short time was!

Only after taking several deep breaths did Kei calm his excitement. He fixed his eyes on Sunan and asked solemnly, "What do you need me to do?"

Sunan's expression turned serious. "Making this potion requires a large amount of Blackscale Lizardmen blood."

"No problem!" Kei agreed without hesitation. "Tomorrow, I will lead the army out of the city to hunt the Blackscale Lizardmen!"

After a brief pause, he strode quickly over to Sunan and patted him on the shoulder with a gratified expression.

"I never expected the methods of the wizards in the legends to be real."

"I was wrong to doubt you before. I apologize to you here!"

Sunan smiled faintly. "There is no need to fuss over that between family."

Kei's smile grew even brighter. He nodded firmly. "Well said! If we brothers work together, then one day we will surely reclaim the Shining Territory and avenge Father."

Sunan nodded earnestly, but his heart remained calm.

With becoming a wizard as his goal, he had not the slightest interest in ruling or conquering. He only wanted to cultivate in peace, attain longevity, and live until the resurgence of elements and the golden age of wizards a thousand years from now.

Still, even if that was what he thought inside, he had to put on the proper appearance before Big Brother.

After all, wizard cultivation required vast resources. Having a lord for a Big Brother would make gathering resources much more convenient and efficient.

Thus, Sunan's goal was clear: while finding ways to strengthen the territory and turn it into a logistical platform for gathering resources for himself, he would cultivate and improve his own strength, striving to advance to a formal wizard as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the generals had also recovered from their shock and exchanged looks.

None of them had expected the methods of the wizards in the legends to be real.

To turn an ordinary person into an Apprentice Knight in a single day—such a method was simply wonderful and fearsome!

For a time, everyone looked at Sunan with amazement and reverence.

Along with it came intense delight.

With such miraculous potions, the territory had hope of growing stronger!

So when Kei gave the order to leave the city tomorrow and hunt the Blackscale Lizardmen, the generals all responded excitedly.

Never before had they wanted so badly to see those damned bandits!

The Blackscale Lizardmen they had once hated so bitterly had now become precious potions on legs in their eyes.

They were all capital for becoming stronger!