Compatibility and Choice

Back when he had decided to stop joining the tribe's hunts, and Fat Meatworm had yet to appear.

Aisijin often shared her hard-won food with him.

This went against Kobold instincts, and it was what made her unique. Sometimes she picked her teeth with her claws while talking; sometimes the roasted meat she brought was burnt and stank. She never spoke smoothly, and what counted as being able to communicate was only in comparison to other Kobolds' clumsiness. Yet he sincerely considered her a friend.

Although he had coincidentally saved Aisijin during a tribal hunt at first, he knew Kobolds were not creatures that understood gratitude. Even Aisijin would not give away her food simply because he had once saved her.

In his eyes, Aisijin was more cherishing of him—cherishing the fact that, within this tribe, there was finally a special little Kobold who could chat with her, who would say things she had never understood, heard of, or considered before.

Just like that roasted meat, burnt and mixed with a fishy stench. Aisijin had learned in their conversations that he liked cooked food, so she had tried making it.

Part of her intention was to make her friend happy with the meal, while another part was Aisijin wanting to try something new.

"Brother Ruger, be careful when you go catch worms alone. There have been stinking lizards nearby," she said solemnly.

"Lizardfolk? Their hunting party crossed into our hunting grounds?" Ruger was somewhat surprised. A hunting party rashly entering another's territory was more than merely stealing prey; it often escalated into war between two tribes.

"Not a Lizardfolk hunting party. Single Lizardfolk, and groups of two, groups of three. They're catching Fat Meatworms too," she said.

Ruger found this highly unusual. The two tribes were separated by vast hunting territories of their own.

The only thing Lizardfolk and Kobolds had in common on this land was their powerful reproductive ability.

Hunting outside and securing their place in the world both depended on the size of their tribes. Hunting parties formed from large groups of tribesmen were unbeatable weapons against massive underground beasts.

And now, the creatures of this region seemed to have had their ways of survival changed by the meatworms.

But Lizardfolk should not have needed to travel so far just to catch worms.

The two then talked about the Blackclaw Lord. Aisijin still followed the tribe out on hunts, because the Black Claw Lord did not like eating worms. But as long as enough food was offered, it would not care whether the Kobolds caught worms to eat. In that regard, it was better than the tyrannical Gray Longneck Lord. Besides, the Gray Longneck Lord was not dead.

During one hunt led by the Gray Longneck Lord, it encountered the current Black Claw Lord. The two underground beasts, both of which had developed intelligence, fought the moment they met. In the end, amid the deaths of countless Kobolds, the Gray Longneck Lord was defeated and fled, its whereabouts unknown.

"The Blackclaw Lord doesn't like being disturbed. It chose a guard for its big, big cave. The tallest Hum-Hum was chosen," Aisijin said, raising her hand and gesturing as she spoke. "The Lord gave him a black fruit. Hum-Hum became taller after eating it, this tall! Stronger than three of me!"

Ruger froze for a moment before remembering who this Kobold named Hum-Hum was.

"Now he stands at the Lord's cave entrance. He doesn't even need to find food himself, and he gets to eat a lot at once," she said.

This Hum-Hum was the big fool he had spared before. Whenever others said or asked anything, the big fellow liked to answer with two hums. Some Kobolds had started calling him Hum-Hum. Thinking about it now, Ruger had managed to scare Big Silly Hum into saying quite a bit more last time.

Ruger ate half a meatworm with Aisijin, and they talked for a long time. He even taught her how to pronounce "friend" in Cavern Common Tongue. As expected, she was delighted.

Long after Aisijin left, Ruger was still thinking about Big Silly Hum.

He was very interested in the fruit Aisijin had described. It could make someone grow taller and stronger soon after eating it. It was practically a divine fruit.

He took out the little pouch he had treasured all the way back.

Filled with excitement, he used his mental power to sense the items in his hands. Working with both hands, he opened the pouch and turned it upside down.

Things he recognized and things he did not recognize spilled out in a small heap.

He first gathered up several books, then five crystals of highly standard sizes.

After sorting through them, he found that aside from a small number of unfamiliar items, there were mainly spell-related books and several scroll-like objects. Looking at them, he did not feel surprised at all. After all, they had been given to him by the Half-Man, who knew what he needed.

"Hm? A diary?"

He casually flipped through several books before stopping at the last one.

It was actually the diary of a Wizard Apprentice named Ka Liu. The Half-Man had truly prepared thoroughly.

The diary contained a young man's doubts, his amazement upon first encountering spells, and all sorts of reflections from his journey. To Ruger, who had never received any relevant instruction, it was simply priceless.

He suddenly realized something. Even now, he had not forgotten the Half-Man.

He still clearly remembered who had given him this storage pouch. He remembered that fellow's refined robes, his half head, his neatly shaved beard, and his smooth chin.

He recalled what the Half-Man had said.

He had already formed a guess. He immediately stood up and took out the long stone used to test mental power.

Grasping one end of the white stone strip, he took a deep breath and focused his mind. The strip slowly emitted a gentle white glow as he stared intently at the ten dots on it.

At last, one dot slowly lit up.

The corners of his mouth curled upward. Unfortunately, his branch of Kobolds had no tails, or his would surely have been wagging.

This meant that his mental power had already reached the standard for a Level-One Wizard Apprentice, fulfilling one prerequisite.

He continued reading the diary, intending to stop only after finishing it or reaching something he did not understand. This diary was a window. Through it, he could see a person and glimpse an unknown field. The opening mentioned life at the Wizard Academy, which was truly enticing, but Ka Liu mostly brushed over it. There was more about confusion over spells and regret over making the wrong choices. The words were always filled with sighs; powerful emotions could be felt through the writing. Passage after passage, on different days, was always filled with anger and regret.

Who was this Ka Liu? Had the Half-Man found this storage pouch? Or had he killed Ka Liu and stolen these things?

The diary mentioned two paths, two choices for long-term development. One was called the Beast King Wizard, while the other was called the Book of Condensation.

Interestingly, Ka Liu had taken neither path. The Book of Condensation was only briefly mentioned, while Ka Liu's greatest regret was not choosing the Beast King Wizard path, because it was a comparatively easier route to becoming a Formal Wizard.

By the time Ka Liu learned of this information, he had already completed the solidification of a Zero-Ring Spell and missed the best opportunity to take that path.

Even more interestingly, after searching through everything, Ruger found no spells or knowledge inheritance related to Beast King Wizards. In other words, he too could not take that path.

The diary also put forward an idea: do not force yourself too much when learning spells. Everyone had different affinities. Spells with high affinity could be mastered easily and even improved rapidly.

Ruger read on and off, but in the end only finished one-third of the diary before encountering more and more things he could not understand.

He had roughly seen the process of a Wizard Apprentice, filled with confusion and unease, going from meditation to spell solidification, and then becoming even more confused.

"Fortunately, I probably won't need to be too confused."

He put down the diary and looked at the few items in front of him.

The fewer choices he could make, the less confusion there should be. There would also be less room for regret in the future.