Under Benjamin's hospitality, David sat down in the chair across from the workbench, and Benjamin took his seat as well.
The two were separated by half a workbench, with several thin crystal shards inscribed with Dragon-kin bloodline runes still scattered across its surface, not yet cleared away.
The Five-Skandha Rainbow Mirror automatically swept the crystals aside, freeing up a clean section of the table. Cold blue rune-light flowed silently across the metal surface.
Benjamin raised his eyes and studied David.
Several centuries had passed since they last met, yet David's appearance had not changed much.
His blond hair was still neatly combed back, his features still carried that classic elite air, and his expression looked much the same as before.
Yet something subtler had changed.
For a moment, Benjamin could not say exactly what it was.
It was only that, at first glance, he instinctively felt that the man before him was somewhat gentler than the young wizard from his memories—the one who had once fought shoulder to shoulder with him.
"Long time no see. You seem to have changed quite a bit," Benjamin said first.
"So have you." David smiled. The smile was almost exactly the same as Benjamin remembered, except that after it faded, a faint line appeared at the corner of his eye. "But your changes are in a good direction. The news has spread everywhere—you held off the Reflected Dimension passage by yourself, Broadleaf personally named you as the one he wanted, and you even joined forces to seal a peak Level 8 dragon. Do you know what people outside are saying about you now?"
There was a teasing note of envy in his voice.
"They say you're the strongest rising-generation wizard Noren Workshop has seen in the past few thousand years."
"Just rumors growing wings,"